


New Beginnings

by thoughtsonateardrop



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005), palm trees in the snow
Genre: Adventure & Romance, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Crossover, Eventual Smut, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Mutual Pining, Original Character(s), Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Sharing a Bed, Slow Build, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-24
Updated: 2019-11-03
Packaged: 2019-11-05 02:40:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 62,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17910419
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thoughtsonateardrop/pseuds/thoughtsonateardrop
Summary: After the events of The Waters of Mars, the Doctor realizes he should not be alone. He needs a friend and he turns to the one person he can rely on.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I started writing this fic a few years ago on fanfiction.net but dropped it for a number of reasons. But I never forgot about it and eventually knew I could never rest with it unfinished. So here I am, finishing it. 
> 
> The Doctor meets Martha chasing the Sontaran from the End of Time. The only difference is she is alone.
> 
> I'm posting the 5 chapters which were on fanfiction.net plus the 6th chapter.
> 
> Enjoy!

Martha ducked behind a wall and looked out across the open yard for any movement. She held her gun close to her, ready to fire at any moment. She took another look, certain he was somewhere near, because Sontarans never run away from a fight. 

Martha had been tracking him for over a week and when she finally found his location, he had slipped out of sight. Tired, Martha scanned the area again and after still seeing nothing, decided to move first. Keeping her gun poised and ready to fire at any moment, she darted across the open space to get a better vantage point. 

Unseen by Martha, the Sontaran commander she was hunting, had his own gun aimed at her head. He had leveled his gun at eye level and was readying himself to pull the trigger, but a swift blow to his lower neck caused him to drop unconscious.

When Martha heard the loud thump of something large hitting the ground behind her, she spun around and brought her gun up. But she frozen in surprise when she saw the slender frame of the Doctor holding a hammer in his hand, with the Sontaran commander lying at his feet unconscious.

When the moment of surprise passed, Martha lowered her gun and smiled.

She slung the gun strap over her shoulder and quickly covered the short distance to the Doctor.

"What are you doing here?" she asked almost breathless from the running. But before he could say anything, Martha answered her own question, "Never mind, of course you'd be here, with aliens and all."

"Hello Martha," the Doctor said smiling.

"Hello Doctor," Martha replied before opening her arms for a hug. The Doctor stepped forward and Martha wrapped her arms around his shoulders whilst he pulled her up into a hug which lifted her off her feet, before setting her back down and causing her to bounce in place. 

Martha looked around expecting to see others joining him, but the Doctor seemed to be alone.

The Doctor also seemed to look at her properly for the first time and frowned, "You look different." 

Martha shrugged off the statement as she readjusted the gun strap, "It's been a while since we last saw each other." 

She knew he was referring to the gun over her shoulder, being well acquainted with the Doctor’s aversion to guns. 

The Doctor still frowned at Martha and asked, “Since when did you start carrying a huge gun and chase aliens?”

"This isn’t too different from what I did before," Martha answered as she bent down to place a metal bang around the Sontaran commander’s wrist. The band locked in place before expanded to envelope his arms. This would keep him safely imprisoned until her contractor came to pick him up.

"When did UNIT start sending their chief medical officer to hunt aliens," he continued.

"I quit UNIT," Martha replied as she stood back up and readjusted the gun strap again.

The Doctor narrowed his eyes and said, "If Jack has you chasing after aliens alone I will-"

Cutting him off Martha said, "I don't work for Torchwood either."

"Then what?" he asked trying to understand.

"I freelance now," she answered. 

She could guess at what the Doctor was thinking, because she had already heard a mouth full from a number of people about her new occupation. But she really did not want to have that same conversation with the Doctor too. 

"I actually have to call this in," Martha said wanting to end his line of questioning as she took her phone out and motioned to the unconscious Sontaran on the floor

"Go ahead," the Doctor said.

Martha made the quick call and when she was done, she looked back at the Doctor. Before she could say anything, he continued as if he had not been interrupted, 

"So, you're a gun for hire now, hunting aliens?" 

Martha resigned herself to the conversation. "More or less yes. Is that so bad?"

"The Martha I knew would not do that,” the Doctor said. 

“Maybe you did not know me as well as you thought you did,” Martha answered back. 

“You are a doctor,” he stated as fact.

Martha sighed as she looked away, hating to admit that even before quitting UNIT and turning down Jack’s offer at Torchwood, that she no longer felt like the doctor she had wanted to be. She did not know when it happened or how her feelings had changed, but somewhere along the line they had. But Martha was not ready to admit that out loud to anyone and especially not to the Doctor, who was just passing through her life. 

"Martha what's going on?" the Doctor asked when it became obvious he was not going to get a response. 

Looking back at the Doctor, Martha replied, "Nothing, this is just what I want to do now.”

"And what about Tim," the Doctor asked.

Martha sighed again, "It was Tom and that's over."

"Want to talk about it?" he offered.

"Nope," Martha answered and to change the subject asked, "What about Rose?" 

Martha was surprised Rose had not made an appearance yet. Or the Doctor’s doppelganger for that matter. 

The pained look on the Doctor's face told her more than he said. "She is in the alternate universe… with the other me." 

"Are you okay?" Martha asked with concern. From the time she traveled with him, she knew just how much the Doctor had wanted Rose back by his side. So she could guess at how the Doctor was feeling after losing her again. 

"It was for the best. They will be happy there together," the Doctor said but Martha could feel the sadness in his words. 

"I'm sorry, it must not have been easy." 

"It wasn't," he admitted. 

Martha did not ask about Donna because before she left UNIT, she saw a report that Donna was back home and seemed to have completely forgotten all memories of the Doctor.

"Back to you," the Doctor said. "Are you going to keep pretending nothings wrong?" 

"There is nothing wrong," Martha replied. “Just because my life is not what you want it to be, does not mean there is something wrong.”

When the words left Martha's mouth, she regretted it as it sounded a lot harsher than she intended. 

"Fine," the Doctor said before turning and walking away. Martha stared at his back wondering if he was angry with her and would simply disappear from her life again, but then he stopped and turned to ask, "You coming?"

He did not wait for a response before continuing to walk away. Unsure what else to, Martha followed him. She followed him all the way back to the Tardis.

When she entered the old ship, it felt like no time had passed at all since she last left. Instead, it felt like she was returning to a familiar friend. But she had to wonder, just how much time had passed since she last stepped through her doors. How much time since she last saw the Doctor. It could be years for all she knew. 

The Doctor walked over to the console and rested his hands against it. He did not say anything but look at her, as if considering something.

After only a few moments and unable to stand the intensity of his gaze, she asked, "Doctor? What is it?" 

He pushed himself off the console and placed his hands in his pockets. "What do you think about traveling with me again?"

"What?" Martha asked taken aback by the request.

It was not like it was the first time he had asked her to travel with him again. He had done so before when he was still with Donna. But, she was surprised he would ask again when she had turned him down before. 

"What do you say? We had a lot of fun didn’t we," the Doctor asked. 

Martha blinked still surprised by the offer. When she had first left the Doctor and things had been hard, she had imagined calling him up to run away from everything, even for a little while. But running away with the Doctor was what had ended up hurting the people she cared for most. So she had promised herself to never do it again. The first time around, the Doctor had also just lost Rose and he had been hung up on her. She was not ready to go through that again. 

So she firmly answered, "No, I can’t do that."

"Why not?" he asked seeming to expect the rejection.

"Well I have my job," Martha said briefly breaking eye contact and knowing it was a lie but not wanting to admit the real reason.

"You freelance, emphasis on the free," the Doctor replied. 

"And I have my family to think about," she continued.

"This is a time traveling machine if you have forgotten,” the Doctor said. 

"And I have my flat," she ended.

The Doctor did not give a reply to that as a smile formed on his lips.

"Doctor just no," Martha said folding her hands.

"Why?" he asked again.

"Just because," Martha said shrugging. "Isn't that enough?"

"Only if you tell me what's going on with you," the Doctor replied. 

Martha opened and shut her mouth again.

Throwing up her hands she said, "Fine I'll stay for now. Only a little while you hear me." Saying the last part with emphasis so he would know this would not be a long-term arrangement. But even as her face showed displeasure at the agreement, she could not help but feel herself getting excited. Travelling with the Doctor could be fun. 

But first she needed a shower. "Is my room still where it was before?"

"Yes," the Doctor replied. Seeming more pleased with himself than she liked.

"Good, I was chasing that Sontaren for a while and I’m now badly in need of a shower,” Martha said.

She marched out of the console room and as soon as she was out of sight of the Doctor she stopped and took a deep breath, disbelieving she had actually agreed to traveling with the Doctor again.


	2. Chapter 2

Martha took her time in the shower and getting dressed. She even briefly thought of taking a nap, but dismissed the idea. She knew if she stayed away much longer, it would seem like she was hiding, even though she was. She could not deny the suddenness of everything had thrown her but they were friends after all, she should just act normal.

She walked the short distance back to the console room, where the Doctor was fiddling with the Tardis controls. When he heard her approaching, he turned to face her seeming pleased. She wanted to smile back but felt nervous, unsure whether the Doctor was going to push her to talk about her life again. She was not ready for that conversation and especially not with him.

Martha stopped by the railings and they stood face to face.

Martha folded her arms in front of her and asked, "So now what?"

"You tell me," the Doctor said mirroring her by also crossing his arms.

So no pushing then, Martha thought, as she felt a surge of relief that he was leaving it up to her.

"Well, we could always go to my apartment," Martha offered.

"Really, and what would we do there?" the Doctor asked playfully as he uncrossed his arms and rested them back against the console.

"Lots of stuff, like me grabbing some clothes."

"Hmmm," the Doctor said as if thinking. A smile spread across his face before he replied, "I guess I have not seen your bedroom in a while."

Martha frowned wondering what the Doctor seemed so smug about until she remembered the last time they had been to her old apartment. She blushed remembering her underwear had been hanging in full view of the Doctor but instead of acknowledging the memory she rolled her eyes.

"You would like that wouldn't you," Martha replied taking on her teasing tone.

"What if I would?" the Doctor asked teasing her back and catching her off guard again.

She tried to laugh off the question, because flirting with the Doctor even as a joke was exactly the type of conversation she should not be having right now.

"Very funny Doctor," Martha replied walking round the console to place some distance between them, as his eyes followed her.

"It wasn't a joke," the Doctor replied turning his body to face her. 

Martha bit her lip wishing she had not opened up a discussion about their going to her place. To change the subject she said the first thing which popped into her head,

"So how long has it been for you?"

“How long?” the Doctor asked despite knowing exactly what she meant.

"You know, since we last saw each other," Martha asked.

The Doctor shrugged, “It's hard to say.”

“So it’s been long then?” 

“You know time is relative, it does not have the same meaning as what you're asking,” he replied. 

Martha knew the Doctor said a lot of fluffy words when he wanted to avoid answering a question. “Like leaving for a year when only days have gone by?” 

That made the Doctor stop and consider Martha for a moment before replying, “Would it matter if it was a long time?”

“I guess not,” Martha replied as she looked away, knowing it would bother her a little. For all she knew, the Doctor could have been away for a lifetime and would not look a day older. He could be a totally different person to who she last remembered and traveled with countless other people. 

But then she chastised herself, because what right did she have to be upset. And it was not like the Doctor had sort her out intentionally, they likely ran into each other accidentally. Plus, they were just friends, free to do what they liked.

Absentmindedly, Martha placed her hand on the console and leaned against a lever. But before she could push down on it, the Doctor's hand closed over her own.

Martha looked up at him questioningly.

"We don't want you to blow a hole as big as Holland through time," he cautioned as he held her hand.

Averting her eyes, Martha looked back down at the Doctor's hand which completed covered her own. He had not let go yet so she pulled her hand away.

"Sorry," she mumbled.

The Doctor drew his own hand back and placed both hands in his pockets again. He turned away before facing her again.

“What do you think of Greece?” he asked. 

“Greece?”

“I would not see Nero again, but we could see Alexander the Great,” the Doctor offered. “Or if Greece does not meet your fancy, there is always ancient Egypt. We have not been there together yet.”

Martha smiled at the possibility, “I would love to meet Cleopatra or Nefertiti. I’ve also never seen the pyramids.” 

Martha smiled to herself thinking it was funny that she had traveled to the furthest reaches of the universe, but there were still so many places she had not been to on Earth.

“Egypt it is,” the Doctor said with excitement and the same familiar look of excitement and adventure in his eyes. 

The Doctor touched a few controls and the center console tower came to life. The Doctor looked across at Martha and gave her a smile which she returned. 

But without warning, the Tardis violently jerked and threw them off their feet before the console tower went dark and silent. 

They both gingerly picked themselves off the ground and the Doctor tried to access the Tardis screen to no avail. He continued to pressed a few of the buttons on the control panel but had no success, before looking across at Martha with a confused look. "I think we've landed."

"I am pretty sure this is not how it works," Martha said. She remembered traveling with the Doctor in the Tardis, and it felt more like riding a roller coaster than a sudden crashing bump.

"No it isn't," the Doctor agreed. 

"Any idea why?" Martha asked.

"No idea," the Doctor said, “but let’s go and have a look outside.”

The excitement in the Doctor's eyes returned at the prospect of a new mystery to solve, as he walked to the doors with Martha following close behind. He swung the doors open and they saw a green grassy field before them with rolling hills in the distance. 

But again without warning, they were both propelled out of the Tardis and thrown on to the moist grass in front of them. The Tardis closed her doors and the hum of the Tardis engines started up again as she began to dematerialize. 

They were both slow to react, both having being dazed by the sudden impact of hitting the ground for the second time in quick succession. But the Doctor acted first by jumping up to try and grab the Tardis doors. But he was too late. The Tardis was already a pale silhouette which his fingers could not grip and she faded into nothing.

With the Tardis gone, they could see a town in the distance as a strong cold wind blew over them. Martha stood up and zipped her jacket closed, thanking the universe she had decided to wear it. She looked around again and wondered why the Tardis could never choose better places for her. When she looked back at the Doctor, he was now shouting into the wind for the Tardis to come back. Martha let him go on for a while, even though she knew it was pointless, before she spoke.

When he seemed to get the worst of it out of him, Martha called out to him, "Doctor?"

He finally turned to face her.

"Any idea when and where we are?" she asked. 

This was not the start she had envisioned, but she knew things never went to plan with the Doctor.


	3. Chapter 3

At least it seemed they were on Earth, Martha tried to comfort herself as they walked down the windy field towards the buildings in the distance. She peeked a look at the Doctor whose brows were furrowed deep in thought. He was visibly upset with the Tardis' inexplicable disappearance and had not said much, but she could not blame him. 

She held in a sigh as she looked at the rapidly setting sun, which had turned the sky into fiery oranges and reds. At least it was beautiful she thought. She also thought of the last time they had been stuck without the Tardis in 1969. She had worked in a shop to support them both while the Doctor worked on a way to get them home. She had hated it but had tried to put on a brave face for the Doctor, at least for the majority of their stay. But that was infinitely better than her time at Farringham School in 1913. She never wanted to go through that again. She could handle being stuck out of time, but she could not handle doing it without the Doctor. She was thankful that at least once again, she had him by her side. She only wished they had met another Sally Sparrow who could hand them a folder to tell them what to do. 

Martha looked at the Doctor again and sighed internally as she wrapped her arms around herself as the cold wind continued to blow.

As they reached the town, there were only a few buildings and not much activity. But Martha also realized calling this a town was too generous. It could not be more than a country village with no more than around a hundred people, if they were lucky. 

“Let’s find out where we are first and then we can work from there,” the Doctor suggested and Martha nodded. The Doctor still seemed preoccupied but Martha did not question him on it. 

She scanned the buildings and saw what looked like the village inn. She walked towards it and as she drew closer, she saw a small message board with various announcements and a missing person poster. The Doctor stopped to also examine it, while Martha decided to enter and get out of the chilly wind. 

As she entered the building, a bell sounded overhead announcing her arrival. Inside was a kindly faced elderly man sitting behind a counter and reading a newspaper. Martha noticed the words ‘BREXIT’ splashed across the top of the paper, but had no idea what it meant. 

"Hello," Martha said with more cheer than she felt.

Speaking with a strong Irish accent, the man replied, "Good day, are you looking for a place to stay."

"We just might be," Martha said though hoping they would not be stuck here for long. 

"Oh, you are not alone?" he asked.

"No, he should be right behind me," Martha said. 

Right then, the Doctor walked in as well, still looking distracted but she plastered on a huge smile for both of them. 

"Hello," the man said in a cheerfully sing song voice and the Doctor returned his greeting.

"So how can I help you two," the man asked. 

"Well, it would be nice to know where we are," Martha replied.

"You lost?" he asked.

"Something like that," the Doctor replied.

"You’re in the village of Ballyfin,"

"Ireland?" the Doctor asked.

The man narrowed his eyes but nodded, "Yes, Ireland." 

"And the date?" Martha asked.

"April 15,"

Feeling stupid Martha continued. "And the year?" 

The man gave both Martha and the Doctor an odd look before saying, "You maybe more than a little lost if you do not know which country or year you’re in. But its 2016."

“Let’s just say it’s a long story,” Martha said, realizing they were 6 years into her future. 

With concern he said, “Are you two in some sort of trouble?”

“It’s nothing like that,” Martha quickly reassured but he did not look convinced. 

The Doctor turned to Martha and said, “Maybe we should have a look around the town." 

They both thanked the man and walked back outside into the chilly evening air.

“What are you thinking,” Martha finally asked.

“About why the Tardis left us here?” 

“Any ideas?” she asked.

Scratching the back of his neck and sighing the Doctor replied, “None.”

“Okay then,” Martha said, “Let’s have that look around. We might find something which will give us a clue.”

***

Three hours later, they sat on one of the benches close to the village’s only grocery store. It was now dark and a few street lights lit up the area. They had pretended to be tourists eager to learn as much as possible about the area and its history. But except for the usual folklore, they had not found anything which could help them. The worst they could say was the place was exceptionally ordinary.

Turning to the Doctor, Martha tried to comfort them both by saying, “Well at least it's not so bad. Only a few years in my future and I had been thinking about visiting Ireland."

Martha did not add that it was for a work contract. 

“I guess,” the Doctor said sullenly.

“Look at it this way, we could have been trapped on a planet made only of pears,” Martha joked but the Doctor barely cracked a smile 

“Doctor?” Martha called. 

“Uhm,”

"We will get the Tardis back," Martha reassured him even though it felt like an empty promise.

The Doctor did not reply but leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

Still trying to be helpful Martha suggested, “If we are out of options, we could try calling Jack.”

“We cannot get in touch with anyone we know,” the Doctor replied not moving. 

“Something in Torchwood could help us-,” Martha continued but was cut off by the Doctor.

“And what if Jack says you have been missing for years? Then I could never take you back to your time because you would be crossing your own timeline. You would lose all those years of your life. I could never do that to you,” the Doctor said after turning to face her before looking away again. 

“So what do you suggest?” she asked.

The Doctor did not say anything but shrugged his shoulders getting lost in thought again.

"Doctor, you are not being helpful," Martha said finally becoming exasperated with his attitude. “At least I’m trying to think of a solution.”

The Doctor looked over at Martha, seeming to finally see her annoyance. He sat up straight and said, "Sorry."

Martha sighed again but with understanding said, “I know you just want the Tardis back.”

A look passed over the Doctor’s face which Martha could not read, but he said nothing. Instead, they both sat in silence for a moment before Martha asked, "Before you said that the Tardis would not just leave us here without a reason.”

“Yes,” the Doctor confirmed. He seemed to want to add something but did not.

Trying to help him along, Martha continued, "So there must be a reason, something about this place?" 

“Have you seen this place?” The Doctor asked raising an eye brow.

“That’s being negative,” Martha said. 

"It might not be this place. It could be something else... maybe the time we are in. Or something may be wrong with the Tardis herself and she needed us out. She can be temperamental."

"Your answers are usually more colourful than that,” Martha said, "And it's not like we can just wait indefinitely for the Tardis to come back."

"I know," he replied. "But I've checked everything I could think of. There are no wacky energy readings, stray signals, or timey whimey stuff."

Finally giving up, Martha also sat back feeling tired and cold. She let out a long heavy sigh unsure what else to say. Maybe there was no reason and they were stuck here, but at least she was actually trying to find a way to get the Tardis back. She glanced at the Doctor who had his head back against the bench and was staring up at the sky in silence.

Noticing the silence and uneasy energy radiated from Martha, he felt the need to say something. "Our best chance of getting the Tardis back is staying in this village."

“It’s not like we have much of a choice,” Martha grumbled before realizing something else. "But we have another problem."

"Which is?" he asked tilting his head to look at her.

"What are we going to do while we are here? Where are we going to stay?" As she spoke, she could see her breath misting from the steadily dipping temperatures.

“We just have to find somewhere to stay,” he said.

Martha pulled the jacket around her closer and slowly breathed up to the sky, watching her breath slowing dissipate. “And how are we going to do that without any money? Though I guess I could always get a job again.”

Martha had her wallet in her pocket, but if she could not contact her family, then she also could not use her credit cards in case they were traced here. 

The Doctor frowned and did not respond. Instead, he stood up abruptly. “I've got an idea.” 

“Which is?” she asked slightly startled by his unexpected movements.

“Just wait here,” the Doctor said before turning to leave. But he abruptly stopped again and removed his suit jacket to place it over Martha’s shoulders. “I’ll be right back.”

He gave her a small smile before turning and walking away without saying anything more. Leaving Martha wondering what he was up to, but also thankful to have the warmth of his jacket. She pulled the much too big jacket closer around herself, while the Doctor walked purposefully away from her and disappeared around a corner. For a moment, Martha wished the Doctor had his long tan coat but his suit jacket still felt warm around her.

Feeling another gust of cold wind, Martha drew her legs to her chest, wrapping her arms and the jacket around them. She placed her head on her knees, thinking she probably looked childish, but she was beyond caring. 

Despite the wind, she could still smell the Doctor’s scent which was distinctly him. She always thought it was like honey but somehow different. A smell Martha thought she would never encounter again. Her mind drifted back to the day she had walked out of the Tardis after the year that wasn't, and how she had promised herself she would never return to the Doctor. It had not been easy walking away from him, and it had been even harder trying to forget her memories of him and moving on with her life.

Especially during that first year away, it was hard not to think of him. She would find herself remembering life with the Doctor and just how exciting it had been. That's why she chose to join UNIT, because working at Royal Hope Hospital was just not enough anymore. But even harder, was when out of the blue, she would find herself remembering small things about him. Like how his eyes would light up when he got excited or the way he would run his hands through his hair when in thought or the way he tilted his head when really listening. Millions of little things which had imprinted on to her mind and caused her to miss him.

But she would also remember other things she preferred to forget. Like the way his eyes would glaze over mid-conversation or he would suddenly stop talking without explanation or worse of all was when she could see him wishing for someone else to be by his side. Those memories had always reminded Martha that she had made the right decision in leaving him. She also only needed to look at her family for more reassurance that she had made the right decision. She could already feel agreeing to travel with the Doctor again was a mistake. As soon as she was back in her own time, she would have to leave again.

She looked up and saw the Doctor walking back towards her. She dropped her legs, letting her thoughts fall away for the moment. 

“I got us a room,” he called out to her, sounding pleased with himself. 

“A room?” Martha called back still draped under the Doctor’s jacket. 

“Of course, did you want your own?” he teased stopping in front of her.

“No,” she replied. 

“So you wanted to share one with me?” he asked smiling.

Martha opened her mouth to reply but stopped herself and instead asked her own question, “I mean how did you get a room?”

“I got a job at the inn,” the Doctor said seeming proud of himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As we were never told the year the Doctor saves Martha. I decided to make Martha's present be 2010 to match the year 'End of Time' was released. No real reason for why I choose 2016 when I first wrote this, it was just a random year in my future (how time flies). But as its now known history, I made a few tweaks tothe story to align with history.


	4. Chapter 4

Martha pretended to cough to cover up a snort of laughter. 

“Are you sick?” he asked concerned. 

“No, no,” Martha said shaking her head. “You got a job?” 

“Yep,” the Doctor confirmed seeming impressed with himself.

Martha narrowed her eyes in disbelief. “But how did you get a job?”

"Why do you sound so shocked?" he asked.

“Because it’s you,” Martha replied. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Doctor, it’s you, working, in a job,” Martha said emphasizing each phrase. 

“Yes, me, working, in a job,” the Doctor replied in turn. 

Martha rolled her eyes and asked again, “And how did you get the job.”

“Noah said they needed some help around the inn,” the Doctor replied.

“Noah?” 

“We met him earlier,” the Doctor said referring to the man with the strong Irish accent. “He and his wife Anna own the inn.”

“Okay,” Martha said standing up, though still finding it odd. She began to remove his jacket but he stopped her. 

“No keep it on,” the Doctor said before turning and beginning to walk away. 

Martha easily caught up to him and asked. “Doctor, have you ever had a job before?” 

“Of course I have,” the Doctor replied. 

“Where?” Martha asked curious.

“With UNIT,” he said thinking it was obvious and expecting Martha to be impressed, but instead he got a different reaction. 

Finally bursting into laughter Martha said, “That was not a job.” 

The Doctor stopped and asked, “Why not?” 

Martha also came to a stop and answered, “I saw your files at UNIT and-”

“Why were you looking at my files?” the Doctor said cutting her off.

Martha waved away the question with her hand and continued, “You never listened to anyone.”

“Because they never knew what they were talking about,” he interjected.

“You did whatever you wanted,” Martha continued. 

“Because I knew better.”

“Not to mentioning coming and going as you pleased,” Martha stated.

“I had other things to do,” the Doctor responded with a shrug. “Plus they were lucky to even have me there at all.”

Martha sighed and explained. "I hate to break it to you but that is not the same as having a job." 

“So you think I can’t do it then?” he asked

“I am not saying you can’t but...,” she said with a shrug.

“Let me surprise you, huh,” the Doctor said as he began walking towards the inn again.

When they arrived, Martha was briefly reintroduced to Noah and she met his wife Anna. Noah’s family had owned the inn for a number of generations and he inherited it because he never moved away from the village like most young people still did. After the brief introductions, Anna showed them to their room on the second floor of the inn. The room was quaint, but better than Martha had expected. It had a small sitting area with a bed near the far wall. 

As soon as they were alone, the Doctor leapt on to the bed and placed his hands behind his head watching her. 

Martha suddenly realized she was still wearing his jacket, so she took it off along with her own, and placed them on one of the chairs. She turned around and saw the Doctor was still watching her which made her pause self-consciously. 

“You okay?” the Doctor asked. 

"Of course," Martha said biting her lower lip and noticing how the Doctor still had not got out of the habit of taking up most of the bed. But feeling like it would make her feel even more self-conscious to say anything, she slide onto the bed beside him. She had no choice but to press against his side and to get comfortable rested her head against his arm.

The Doctor looked away from her and stared up at the ceiling. 

“I’m sorry,” the Doctor said. 

“Hmmm?” Martha said, looking up towards him. 

"For getting us stuck here," the Doctor said.

Martha looked up at the ceiling as well before saying without ill feeling, “Not exactly the ideal time travel destination.”

“And not what I had in mind when I asked you to travel with me,” the Doctor said.

Turning to look at him again, Martha said, “It’s not your fault.”

The Doctor also faced her as he said, "But I think I haven't made it easy."

“A bit of an understatement,” Martha joked. 

“I know that, I am sorry,” he said.

Lightheartedly Martha said, “I’m starting to think this is becoming our thing.”

“What is?” 

“Getting stranded in time,” Martha answered. 

The Doctor huffed out a laugh, “You might be right.” 

“We are ‘Smith and Jones lost in space,’” Martha continued to joke causing the Doctor to laugh again. “Though, it sounds like a cheesy ‘60s sci-fi program.” 

“I am in it, so it cannot be that bad,” the Doctor replied with a smile. 

Martha smiled back, happy to see him already beginning to relax. 

“Pfftt, next you will want it named after you,” Martha teasingly mocked. 

“What is wrong with that?” the Doctor asked incredulously.

“Like you don’t have a big enough head already,” she continued to tease.

After a pause the Doctor said, “I like Smith and Jones better, at least you will be with me.”

Martha looked up at the Doctor again, wondering how much time had passed since they last seen each other. And how much of that time he had spent alone. 

“Yeah, it won't be so bad if we are together," Martha agreed smiling.

The Doctor faced her and she thought he was going to say something, but again he seemed to hesitate and said nothing. 

Martha chose to not question it and instead smiled reassuringly. Sensing what the Doctor needed, she moved closer to him and wrapped her arm around his waist. She settled more comfortably against his chest as the Doctor wrapped his arms around her. Her eyes slid closed and she quickly drifted to sleep as the tiredness of the last few days finally caught up with her, against the warmth of the Doctor's body and comfort of his arms.


	5. Chapter 5

When Martha woke up in bed the following morning, the space beside her was empty. She sat up and looked around before calling out the Doctor’s name, but she got no response. A small clock on the wall told her it was pretty late into the morning, so she crawled out of bed and headed downstairs.

As Martha reached the base of the stairs, she heard Anna’s cheerful voice say, “Good morning.”

“Good morning,” Martha replied as she looked around at the empty dining space, littered with empty plates and dirty cups. 

“He has gone out with Noah,” Anna said noticing Martha looking around as she began wiping down the tables. 

"Did he say when he will be back?"

"They should be back any time now,” Anna answered. 

Just then, Martha’s stomach grumbled in protest. 

“Sorry, I guess I haven't eaten in a while,” Martha said not remembering when she last ate something. 

“We saved something for you in the kitchen,” Anna said as she picked up a pile of plates ready to head there. 

"Thank you but let me help you clean up first,” Martha offered. 

“Just please grab the cups over there, I can finish the rest later,” Anna said pointing to a tray which Martha quickly grabbed and followed her into the kitchen. 

Once inside, Anna refused any further help and instead directed Martha to sit down while she prepared a plate of food for her. Once done, Anna placed the food in front of Martha and sat down across from her, with a cup of tea.

“I noticed when you arrived last night,” Anna began, “you did not have anything with you.”

Thinking quickly Martha said, “We lost all our luggage on our way here.”

“Another long story?” Anna asked, when Martha did not elaborate. 

“Yeah, something like that."

“So you will probably be needing clothing,” Anna asked.

“Yeah probably,” Martha agreed. 

“My daughter left some of her old clothes before she moved away. I can lend you some. I think you are basically the same size,” Anna offered.

"Thank you," Martha said appreciatively. "I promise to return everything as soon as I get my stuff back."

"I do not think my daughter needs them anymore, so it's okay if you keep them. I will also get some things for the Doctor,” Anna offered which Martha kindly accepted.

“Neither of you must have any family near here then?" Anna questioned further.

“No, my family are all in London,” Martha answered as she realized it had been a while since she had last spoken to or seen them. Her last meeting with her mother had not gone well. Francine already did not understand why Martha broke off her engagement to Tom, despite Martha explaining things were not working out. But she managed to be even more upset when Martha told her she quit UNIT. She did not understand how someone could go from one day loving her job to suddenly quitting it without an explanation. But the problem was Martha found it hard to explain it to herself. That leaving her job was one way of breaking free from her past. She just never imagined that she would run straight into it. 

“I'm sorry,” Anna said when she saw Martha looking pensive, “I did not mean to pry.”

“It’s okay, you’re not,” Martha replied, turning her focus to her food and away from her thoughts. “It has just been a while since I last saw them.”

"You could use our phone to call them," Anna offered.

"It's hard to explain but I can't." 

“Don’t tell me, it’s a long story,” Anna half joked. 

Martha smiled knowing how everything sounded. “I promise there is a good reason for everything.

But Anna looked at her with concern when she said, “If you are in some trouble and need help-” 

Holding her hands up and shaking her head in denial, Martha stopped her, “We are not in trouble I promise. It’s not what you think.”

Some of the worry left Anna’s face, but not all. “My Noah has a knack for finding people who need help. So when the Doctor walked into our inn and said you had become stranded and needed a place to stay, how could we say no. But I want you to know that I am here if you ever need to talk.”

“Thank you Anna,” Martha said smiling with appreciation. She wanted to tell Anna the truth. But it was hard to explain that they were currently stranded in the future because the Doctor’s time traveling ship threw them out in a grassy field and disappeared. 

They heard the front door open and Anna stood up.

“It must be them. I will tell the Doctor you are here,” Anna said. But as she turned to leave, she paused and turned back around again. “Why does he only call himself the Doctor?”

“It’s his name,” Martha said shrugging. “You will get used to it.”

Anna nodded and left. Shortly afterwards the Doctor walked in and threw himself into the seat Anna had just vacated. 

“Good morning?” Martha asked.

"Not so much," the Doctor said pursing his lips.

"You went looking for the Tardis," she assumed. 

"Yes, but it is still a no show and no further clues for why we need to be here," the Doctor answered.

"I guess it is a good idea to keep checking if it will come back on its own," Martha replied.

"Yep, while we figure out how to get it back," the Doctor said tapping the table in thought.

“Do you have any more ideas on how to do that?” Martha asked. 

“Let's keep searching and see what pops up,” the Doctor suggested.

When the Doctor stood to leave again Martha asked, “Where are you going now?”

“To work, I do have a job now,” the Doctor said.

“Right,” Martha said smirking. “Good luck!” 

“No luck needed,” the Doctor said before leaving the room again. 

***

_Four weeks later._

Martha sat on the bed flipping through a book about the history of Ireland. It was not a particularly interesting book, but Martha was doing some research. As the days then weeks dragged on and they were no closer to get the Tardis back, Martha had made use of Noah’s library to pass the time. He was an avid reader and had acquired a unique collection which was giving her some ideas.

As she turned another page, the Doctor walked in and collapsed on the bed. 

"How was your day?" she asked looking up from her book.

The Doctor lay with his eyes closed and said nothing.

"That bad?" Martha asked as she closed her book and put it aside.She had also started helping out at the inn but was surprised that the Doctor had actually stuck to his job, and not quit after a few days as she had expected. 

The Doctor turned his head to face her and groaned, "I hate wood.”

"What?" she asked in confusion.

"Wood, I hate it,” the Doctor repeated as he sighed dramatically. “I spent hours chopping up firewood. Have you tried swinging an axe for hours? Because that was my day. And Noah threatened to make me help him repair his wooden fence tomorrow." 

Martha could not help but smile a little at the Doctor’s pouty face. "And of course your sonic was useless.”

The Doctor scowled in disapproval. "My sonic is not useless, but yes in this situation, I could not use it."

"People have been cutting wood for millions of years, without the need of a sonic," Martha teased. 

The Doctor rolled his eyes and did not reply. Instead he closed his eyes, pretending to sleep.

Martha smiled and sat up onto her knees, "Remove your shirt."

"I am too tired to move," the Doctor whined despite opening one eye.

"Just do it," Martha ordered.

The Doctor frowned and gave Martha a quizzical look but he still sat up and remove his shirt, revealing a white vest underneath. 

Martha briefly considered asking him to remove it as well but instead said, “Turn over and lay down on your stomach.”

“Why?” the Doctor asked. 

Martha raised an eye brow and he sighed but obeyed, turning to lay down. 

Martha crawled closer to sit beside him and wondered if this was a good idea, but it was a bit late to stop now. She placed her hands on his bare shoulders, feeling the heat of his skin as the Doctor tensed up both from his sore muscles and at her touch. At first, she lightly pressed her fingers into his skin, feeling the knots in his muscles. Then she applied more pressure, letting her hands glide across his broad shoulders to his neck and back, massaging his sore muscles. She could feel the stiffness in his muscles slowly releasing as her hands glided across his back. She pressed into his pressure points feeling his tension release further. 

The Doctor relaxed into the feel of Martha's hands running down his back and between his shoulder blades. He had not anticipated staying this long in 2016 or having to keep a job. The job had also turned out to be harder than he anticipated. He would have much rather worked in a shop but he would never admit that to Martha. Now today, his back ached which was new. He knew in a short while his body would heal itself (healing faster than a human's body) but Martha's hands releasing the stiff knots in his muscles felt a lot better. Martha used her weight to press harder into his back muscles and the Doctor released an audibly moan of contentment.

Martha's hands quivered and stopped unsure whether she should continue. She knew she liked the feel of the Doctor’s skin under her hands and the freedom to let her hands roam across his back. But she was not ready to hear the Doctor moaning. It brought back a past desire she would rather not think about. 

"No don't stop," the Doctor urged gruffly kicking himself. 

Martha hesitated for only a moment before placing her hands on his back again, and letting them roam over his skin. They traveled between his shoulder blades, before travelling down his lower back and stopping at his waist. She paused there as her mind imagined her hands wandering lower, thinking of the Doctor moaning again. Shaking her head, Martha firmly pushed the thought away, chastising herself for even thinking about it. She instead pressed her hands into his spine, working her way slowly up to his bare shoulders. 

The Doctor noticed Martha’s brief pause before her hands ran up his back. He closed his eyes concentrating on not letting any sound escape his lips again, as he felt the imprint of her hands against his skin. He wished he had removed his vest as well, which now served as a barrier to the feel of her hands against his skin. Her hands felt soft and he could feel the care as she worked expertly to loosen his muscles. Her touch was also oddly comforting but something more. But before he could figure out what that more was, she removed her hands.

Sitting back, Martha asked, "Better?" 

"Yes," the Doctor said, feeling disappointed she had stopped. He rolled over and put his head into her lap and smiled up at her. "I should start mentioning how hard my day was more often."

Martha smiled down at him and brushed his hair back. “Don’t you already do that.”

“Maybe.” 

Martha lightly stroked the Doctor’s hair and he closed his eyes enjoying the feel of her hands as they ran through his hair. 

"I hope you know that was a onetime free service, next time I am charging," Martha joked. 

"What will you be charging?"

"I haven’t decided yet," Martha said as she continued to play with his hair and he opened his eyes to look up at her again.

"When you decide, let me know.” 

The Doctor closed his eyes again feeling relaxed and calm. The last few months had been hard on him. He had been forced to say good bye to the woman he had loved forever and lost his best friend. All his friends had moved on without him, leaving him with no one. He had felt so alone, but thought he was better off by himself than having to continue losing the people he loved and cared for. So he had traveled alone with the prophecy of his death hanging over his head. But on Mars, he saw how wrong he had been to shoulder everything on his own. 

He opened his eyes and looked up at Martha. He wished he could forget everything and just stay in this moment. That they could just stay here and never leave. But he knew he could not do that. He knew he had been selfish when he had sort Martha out in desperation, and that he was continuing to be selfish by not being truthful with her. But he could not bring himself to tell the truth. 

Martha’s hand paused as she looked at the Doctor. “You okay?”

Instead of answering her, he asked, “How was your day?" 

“Fine despite the Tardis still not showing up again,” she joked. It had become their daily routine to return to the spot the Tardis had left them at least twice a day. “But I have been doing a bit of research, some out of the box thinking.”

The Doctor smirked and replied, “And what out of the box thinking have you been doing?”

“That the hills are haunted,” Martha answererd.


	6. Chapter 6

The Doctor sat up and moved to sit across from Martha as she crossed her legs.

"Haunted hills?” the Doctor asked with skepticism. 

“I know it sounds bonkers,” Martha said. 

“Don't tell me you believe in ghosts now," the Doctor asked with a mixture of disbelief and surprise. 

"Of course not,” Martha answered. “But I had been thinking we have been going about this wrong.” 

“How do you mean.” 

“We have assumed the reason the Tardis left us here was because of this village, but I decided to extended our search?”

“To where?” he asked.

“I have been reading through Noah’s library about the history of this place and there were some interesting legends and stories. We actually heard about one of them on our first day here.”

“Okay,” the Doctor said curious. 

“They all reference the same legend of a mythical warrior called Fionn mac Cumhaill. Legend has it, he ate the “Salmon of Knowledge” and gained all the world's knowledge, including the ability to escape death. So instead of references to his death, it is believed he is sleeping in a cave surrounded by his army, only to awake in Ireland’s hour of greatest need.”

“Okay interesting fairytale, but why would that make the hills haunted?” the Doctor questioned. 

“Here’s the thing,” Martha said, “I’ve read a few books about odd occurrences in the mountains. Most are accounts of people seeing the ‘spirit’ of Fionn in the forest. Or hearing his voice or the voice of his army in the wind. So I decided to speak to some of the locals who come to the inn and some firmly believe the stories or have experienced it themselves. Even Anna said as a little girl she got lost in those hills and stumbled upon a cave. She doesn’t remember much, but swears she heard voices before she ran out scared and her father found her.”

“And you’ve been doing this without telling me?” the Doctor asked. 

“It was just for fun at first, until I noticed a common thread in the stories. That voices were heard near a mountainside or a cave, and the voices are always trying to lure you to them.”

“That does sound interesting,” the Doctor agreed. 

“Even more interesting is another missing person poster showed up today,” Martha said. 

“Missing person?” the Doctor asked.

“Remember there was a missing person’s poster when we first arrived,” Martha asked.

“Yes, the pair of tourists,” the Doctor said.

“Don’t be angry, but my credentials at UNIT were not revoked so I used them to check the police database-,”

“You did what? You know how dangerous that is,” the Doctor said with concern.

“Yes, yes, but I found other cases of missing people in the area. Over the years, a lot of people have gone missing in those hills. Not very often, but often enough for it to be just a coincidence. But over the last few months, there has been a spike in the disappearances. A total of eight tourists so far in less than 3 months. Their last known locations are hard to determine but they’ve all been in areas close to the Slieve Bloom Mountains. The mountains we can see from this village.”

“If eight people have gone missing, shouldn’t there be more news on it?” the Doctor asked. 

“The disappearances haven’t been linked because they are tourists seemingly vanishing in isolated areas which don’t yet seem connected. Also, all the news is focused on the Panama Papers and the vote to leave the EU.” 

“Ah yes, Brexit, they are going to regret that soon,” the Doctor mused. In a more up beat voice he continued, “This is brilliant Martha!” 

“Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves, we thought that all the other leads were promising too,” Martha said. 

“Don’t sell yourself short,” the Doctor said excited. “This is the best lead we have had so far. And if something is taking people we need to go and check it right away.” 

The Doctor moved to stand up but Martha caught his arm and said, “I think we should wait-,” 

“Wait?” the Doctor asked cutting her off. “We can’t wait while people’s lives are in danger. In fact, how can you be sitting so calmly? Or don’t you care that people’s lives are at risk.”

Martha’s grip loosened in surprised at the Doctor's sharp words. 

She let go of his arm and said, “Yes, we should wait until we can come up with a plan on how to do this.”

“A plan?” the Doctor asked, seeming to deflate a little. 

“I knew you’d get excited and want to run into action immediately. I know you’ve been out of it of late, but think. The mountain range is too extensive for us to go wondering around hoping to stumble on something. Also, if you haven’t noticed, its actually now dark outside, so not the best time to actually see anything.”

“Oh, you have a point there,” the Doctor conceded, sitting back down. 

“Also from my research, the disappearances only happen after every two to three weeks, so I’m hoping we have some time. What do you think? Is there a way for us to figure things out before someone else goes missing?”

Getting pensive, the Doctor stayed silent in thought for a moment, running different ideas in his head. “We know every legend has a grain of truth to it...,” he began as Martha wondered if that was really true but not thinking this was the right time to question it.

“… so whatever it is might be hidden in a cave somewhere on that mountain, causing people to hear voices. Calling out to them or sending a signal.”

“A signal?” Martha asked. 

“Yes, like a transmitter sending out a telepathic message which lures people to it,” the Doctor said confidently though more subdued than before.

“Is there a way you can locate this signal?” Martha asked. 

The Doctor crossed his arms and tapped his mouth with his index finger as he thought. “I need something that can pick up the signal, even at low levels.” 

The Doctor took out his sonic and looked at it before shaking his head. “I can use my sonic as a sonar but I need something to boost the search area.”

“What do you need?” Martha said eager to help. 

“Ummh,” the Doctor said thinking again. “Probably a toaster would have a lot of the components.”

“A toaster?” Martha asked confused.

Continuing as if she had not spoken, he began listing off a number of things he needed. “But the problem will be the power source. We will fry the grid if we used electricity.”

“Any ideas?” Martha asked. 

“You might not like it,” the Doctor said.

“When has that ever stopped you?” she asked. 

“Fair point,” the Doctor conceded. “I need a smoke detector, a printer, an electric kettle, a big dish and lots of salt.” 

“Salt?” 

“And Brazilian nuts if we can find them,” the Doctor ended.

“What are you building?” Martha asked.

“You’ll see!” the Doctor answered without elaborating further.

Martha frowned but did not push it. “I think we can find some of the things you mentioned earlier in Noah’s shed out back? He once said he has been storing things there since his grandfather used it.”

“Excellent,” the Doctor said getting excited again. 

“But let me do the asking,” Martha said knowing the Doctor sometimes lacked tack.

Not wasting anymore time, Martha went to speak with Anna and Noah to convince them to give up their only printer and toaster, along with a number of things around the inn. It took a bit of convincing and promising to replace them as soon as they were finished with them but at least they had an extra toaster. Noah also willing agreed to let them have anything in the shed but as the old shed did not have any lightning inside, they decided to check it in the morning and got to work with what they had.

They brought everything up to their bedroom and Martha helped the Doctor dissemble the equipment and helped where she could until it was late into the night. Martha kneeled back and yawned as she watched the Doctor piecing together two electric pieces. 

“Why don’t you get some rest. I can work on this on my own for now,” the Doctor said. 

“It’s okay, we have a lot of work to do and it will be faster if we did it together,” Martha said despite letting out another yawn. 

The Doctor lowered his sonic and looked at Martha. “I'm sorry about what I said before.”

“Huh?” Martha asked confused. 

“About you not caring. I know that would never be true,” the Doctor explained.

The apology took Martha by surprise. She had gotten used to the Doctor making offhanded comments, but this was the first time he had apologized for it. 

“It’s fine,” she said acting like it was nothing. 

“No its not and you did not deserve that,” he said. 

“No I didn’t,” she agreed.

The Doctor paused again before he spoke. “Can I ask you a question?” 

Martha nodded her head.

“When I met you again, it didn’t feel like you,” the Doctor said. 

“What do you mean?” Martha asked. 

“Why do you hunt aliens?”

Martha shrugged her shoulders and said, “It’s just something I’ve chosen to do.”

“But from the moment I met you, all you ever wanted to be was a doctor. What changed,” the Doctor asked.

“Maybe you did not know me as well as you thought,” Martha answered evasively.

“I don’t believe that,” the Doctor said. “You are still as brilliant and caring as the day I first met you, if not more.”

“But a lot has happened since that day when I was a naïve med student stuck on the moon, and not all of it good,” Martha countered. 

The Doctor pursed his lips and asked, “The Master?” 

“That’s part of it but not all of it… Its just how life is. People change. I think you know that better than anyone.” 

A strange look crossed over the Doctor’s face which morphed into a look of worry.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Martha said. “I have accepted everything that’s happened. You don’t have to feel sorry for me.”

” I don’t feel sorry for you,” the Doctor corrected, “I was just wondering if I could have done things differently.”

“Don’t,” Martha said knowing that nothing the Doctor said would change the past. It happened and she accepted it. 

“But if I hadn’t come into your life-,” the Doctor tried to say but Martha again tried to stop him. 

“Doctor stop. There are a lot of reasons for why I quit working for UNIT and not all of them have to do with you.”

Seeming not to listen to her the Doctor continued, “But all the bad things that happened, wouldn’t have happened if I had stayed out of your life. You lived alone on the run for a year because of me. Your family suffered because you knew me. You would have been happier if I hadn’t been in your life.”

“That’s not true,” Martha said shaking her head. “I have never once thought that. Meeting you opened up a whole new life to me. In a way, you gave my life a new purpose. I always wanted to help people but you made me realize I could do that even when I wasn’t a doctor. I mean, some bad things happened after meeting you but so did a lot of good. I would never give that up."

“So you don’t have regrets?” he asked.

Martha took a moment to think through her reply before she responded. “It’s hard to not regret some things, but I believe I made the best decisions I could at the time. That’s all that matters to me.”

As Martha spoke, she realized the truth of her words. She always did what she thought was right, that was what mattered. Her life may not have turned out the way she envisioned it would, but that was okay too.

The Doctor tilted his head to the side and watched Martha for a moment before asking, “So you quitting UNIT and freelancing, was that for the best?”

Martha nodded. “At the time yes, it was the fresh start I needed. Now if you’re done grilling me, we still have a lot of work to do.” 

“Actually I have a lot of work. You should get some rest,” the Doctor said. 

“I’m okay,” Martha said again. 

The Doctor stood up and walked over to Martha. He placed his hands on her shoulder and directed her to stand up, then walked her back to the bed. 

“We have time,” the Doctor said. “I can finish up on my own and you can help me in the morning.”

“Are you sure?” she asked still hesitating. 

“Yes,” the Doctor said smiling as he turned and walked to sit back down.

Martha lay back on the bed reluctantly as she watched the Doctor work before closing her eyes, and letting herself drift off into sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to anyone whose read so far. I hope you enjoyed the first 6 chapters. I would also love to know what you thought of them.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A song I liked for this chapter was [ Homeless ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKsDv-5CB9w) by Maria Mena

When Martha opened her eyes, sunshine was breaking through the curtains and streaming light into their room. The Doctor was no longer working in front of her, but instead she could feel his sold weight pressing against her back, with his arm encircling her waist. She rubbed her eyes and looked around the room, wondering why the morning felt different. 

Seeming to react to her movement, the Doctor stirred behind her and she went still, afraid to wake him if he was still asleep. But he only nuzzled against her lower neck and let out a shallow breath which fanned out against her back, before becoming still again. Martha felt her heart rate pick up as the Doctor’s breath tickled her lower neck, knowing she would never get used to moments like these, no matter how long she shared a bed with him. She closed her eyes and took a shallow breath, willing her heart to slow. 

It was then, she realized what was different. The Doctor was still sleeping peacefully beside her. He had always been an early riser and their stay here was no different. It made her wonder how long he had stayed up working alone.

Martha remained motionless, not wanting to wake him, and instead closed her eyes to try and get some more sleep. She listened to the Doctor's shallow breaths, willing herself back to sleep, but after a few minutes she knew it was pointless. She opened her eyes again and watched small particles of dust floating in the golden sunlight from the parted curtain, wishing she could turn around and look at the Doctor in this moment.

Knowing she could not, she let her mind drift back to their last conversation before she went to sleep. She wondered what had prompted it after weeks of silence. Or if the Doctor had any idea how much time she had spent thinking about her past in the last few months. He certainly had no idea how much anguish she had been in, in those first first months after leaving him. But thankfully, that was all in the past now. Now, she was thankful for the time they spent together. She knew she had once warned Donna that the Doctor was like fire, stand too close and people get burnt. But she would never give up the crazy impossible things they had done together. She had loved it and she had also grown to love him. She had also stopped regretting that and had come to accept that the Doctor would never love her.

Now, the only regret she still had was waiting so long to tell him the truth. She had once wondered whether anything would have changed between them if she had been honest earlier. But she always came to the same conclusion, nothing would have changed.

Martha let out a deep sigh and gently slid a hand over the Doctor’s arm which was still around her waist. She closed her eyes again and listened to his even breathing and the steady rise and fall of his chest against her back. The sound was both comforting and reassuring, serving as a safe anchor to the present, and away from her past and her regrets. 

Martha finally felt herself relax and begin to drift back into sleep, until the Doctor stirred again behind her and pulled away. Martha turned around and saw the Doctor yawn and run a hand through his hair.

A smile spread across Martha's lips as she looked at the Doctor and his unruly hair which stuck out at odd angles. She could not help but run a hand through it in a mock attempt to tame it. 

"Good morning sleepy head," she greeted before drawing back her hand. 

The Doctor smiled and asked, "How long have you been awake?"

"Not long," Martha answered. But still fascinated by his wild hair, Martha tried to smooth it down again, but then seeing it was hopeless ruffled it back into an unruly mess.

The Doctor scrunched his face in mock annoyance, “You’re messing up my hair?”

“It’s already a mess,” Martha replied.

The Doctor yawned again and looked up at the ceiling and after a moment said, "We should get ready." 

"We should," Martha agreed but made no attempt to get up and instead lay entranced by his soft smile and wild hair. 

The Doctor also made no attempt to get up and instead turned back to look at her. He rose to his elbows and leaned in closer to Martha. She watched him unsure what he was doing, until he reached out his hand and brushed away a strand of her hair which had fallen across her forehead.

Martha smiled at the innocent gesture, as he reached over her head again. But this time, he began messing her hair which caught Martha off guard. She laughed at the Doctor’s childishness and tried to grab his wrist to stop him, but the Doctor caught her wrists instead and pinned them down to the bed, causing him to fall on top of her.

"Why are you trying to stop me when I’m only returning the favour,” the Doctor teased with a smile playing on his lips.

“Your hair was already messy, I was only trying to improve it,” Martha replied innocently.

”What if I say its fun messing up your hair?” 

“For you maybe,” Martha said trying to wiggle her hands free.

”I can make it fun for you as well,” the Doctor said with a devious smile.

Martha looked up at him confused until he released her wrists and poked her in the side.

"Don't," Martha warned, but the look of glee in his eyes told her everything she needed to know. 

"No Doctor," Martha cried before he began tickling her.

Martha laughed and squirmed as the Doctor merciless tickled her sides, as she tried to fight him off. But she quickly realized there was no way she could win against him, so she conceded. 

“Stop, stop, stop," Martha cried unable to stop laughing. "I give up, I give up,” 

The Doctor stopped also laughing along with her 

“But I’m having so much fun,” the Doctor teased as she continued to squirm underneath him. 

“Okay wait," Martha said seeing him about to start tickling her again. "I promise to try and not touch your hair again if you stop.” 

The Doctor let out a huff of laughter. “Try?”

“I was taught not to make promises I cannot keep,” Martha answered, trying to keep a straight face.

The Doctor laughed again with his eyes crinkled in amusement, causing Martha to smile again. 

“Okay, I can live with that,” the Doctor agreed.

But instead of moving off her, the Doctor smoothed down Martha’s hair as he smiled down at her. Martha also smiled up at him as her eyes moved from his smiling eyes to settle on his lips. Again, Martha felt her heart begin to race, becoming very aware of how close he was. 

"What are you doing? Get off," Martha asked teasingly as she began to feel nervous.

"And what would you do if I said no," the Doctor teased back as he let his hand come to rest beside her head.

Martha looked back up into the Doctor's eyes before taking in his smile again. She loved his smile. It was one of the first things she had loved about him, before she realized she was falling in love with him.

She wondered now how different this moment would be if they were more than friends.

Martha blinked up at the Doctor in surprise, immediately chastising her mind and heart for even contemplating the thought. Her being with the Doctor would never happen and thinking about it would only cause her pain. It would cause both of them pain.

The Doctor gave Martha an assessing look and the laughter from a few moments ago died away. “What are you thinking?” 

Saying the first thing that came to mind, she blurted out, “About us.”

But when the words left her mouth, Martha wondered if her brain had left her body. She could never admit to having thought about being with the Doctor. 

The Doctor let his eyes travel over Martha's face and frowned, "What about us?" 

Thinking quickly Martha answered, "About our being stuck here."

"Are you that unhappy here?" he asked. 

"No, that is not what I meant," Martha answered also frowning. 

"Then what do you mean?"

“I don't know, I was just thinking about it," Martha said, at a loss for what else to say. 

The Doctor continued to look down into her eyes as if searching for answers, but she was not sure what he hoped to find.

The Doctor finally pulled away from her and sat up. 

Martha's eyes followed the Doctor and she slowly sat up as well.

“I will be in the shed,” the Doctor said standing up and slipping on a shirt over his vest, before he walked out the room without another word.

Martha stared at the Doctor’s back until the door closed behind him. She flopped back down on the bed and closed her eyes, hoping the Doctor realized if she held anything back for him, it was because sometimes the truth caused more pain than good.

She only now realized she had forgotten an important truth about the Doctor. He was like fire. A fire which could light up your world in the most brilliant and amazing ways. The feel of his arms, the warm press of his body, the breath against her neck. They could all set her ablaze. Even a simple look could brighten her thoughts and a smile could spill warmth into her heart. 

But she knew she could never ask for anything more. She had to remember she did not plan to stay with the Doctor for long and her time with the him was fleeting. It may be fun and exciting like a dream now, but when it was over, she would be left with the coldness of reality. She could not let herself fall into entertaining silly fantasies like she did in the past. It would just hurt her in the long run. 

She knew she was stupid for making things awkward. They had a job to do and the Doctor needed her help. Martha finally rolled out of bed and got ready to follow him down.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has left kudos and comments. I enjoy writing Ten and Martha, so its nice to know others are enjoying my writing. 
> 
> I usually listen to music when writing and find certain songs fit a chapter or help me write. For chapter 8, it was [ Love Is Here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLAei3b3sXc) by Tracey Chattaway. 
> 
> I also liked [ Homeless ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKsDv-5CB9w) by Maria Mena for Chapter 7.
> 
> As a side note, I'm such a nerd but I loved that my first 7 chapters had a total word count of 12345. 
> 
> Enjoy!

When Martha got to the shed, the Doctor was already rifling through the chaotic mess which was Noah’s shed. She watched him tossing things aside and pick up an old lamp stand.

“Catch,” the Doctor said throwing it to her.

Martha just managed to catch it as the Doctor said, “Don’t just stand there, we have lots of work to do.”

Martha placed the lamp down, just outside the shed door, before joining him inside. They started sorting through decades worth of outdated machinery, tools and appliances, for anything the Doctor could use. From old lamp mantles, welding rods and coloured glass, to things Martha had no idea what they were for. The day quickly passed with them scavenging for anything they could use, until the Doctor was satisfied with their finds. Once that was done, they carried everything up to their room. 

By the time they arrived in the room with the last of the things, it was evening. Martha dropped what she was carrying into a pile and looked around at their room and said, "I'm now living in a junkyard.

"What's wrong with junkyards?" the Doctor asked as he dumped his own things in pile on the floor. "I have met some of the best people in junkyards." 

"Why does that not surprise me," Martha said walking to collapse on the bed in exhaustion.

The Doctor also jumped on to the bed and lay beside her, propping himself up on his elbows.

Remembering something important, she rolled on to her side so she could face him. “You never did tell me what you're building.”

“I didn’t?” he said suddenly picking at the bed spread.

“No, you didn't. All you said was I might not like it. Why wouldn’t I like it?”

“It’s not big deal,” the Doctor said.

“So what is it then?” Martha persisted.

Stopping what he was dong to look at her, he answered nonchalantly, “It’s just a small reactor to power a sonar that would be powerful enough to search the mountainside.”

Martha's eyes narrowed as she also propped herself on her elbows. “A reactor... like a nuclear reactor? You’re building a bomb in our bedroom?!”

"But it's only a small one and it's not really a bomb," the Doctor said as if that mattered.

Martha shook her head in disbelief. "You never cease to amaze me. Just please don't blow us all up, alright." 

"Are you forgetting who you are talking to?" he said as he poked Martha on the forehead.

Martha collapsed on the bed as if he had pushed her, "You've killed me."

"Stop being so dramatic."

"I'm not being dramatic, I'm just tired," Martha said yawning and closing her eyes.

“Get some rest then, I’ll wake you when I need some help,” the Doctor said getting up from the bed.

“I’m just resting my eyes,” Martha said looking across at the Doctor. “Don’t let me fall asleep.” 

“I’ll wake you,” he promised.

Martha closed her eyes again, telling herself it was just for a moment. However, when she opened her eyes again, she was laying in a dark room in the Doctor's arms.

She could see the room was slowly starting to brighten from the rising sun and knew she had slept the night away. She could hear the shallow breathes of the Doctor beside her, so she pulled away just enough to confirm he was asleep. She lay watching him, not minding that he had not woken her up as he promised.

He looked peaceful and relaxed in the dim light, which was a change from how he normally was when awake. Martha's eyes moved over his smooth forehead which would usually be creased in thought, down to his expressive eye brows which were more often than not knitted together. Down his narrow nose and to his pink lips, which were not as quick to smile as they once were. Her eyes gazed at his handsome face, wondering what secrets his mind held. She had not missed the times he had seemed to hesitate in tell her something, or forget how agitated he had been on the first day they arrived in Ireland. She had always thought there was something more behind it than losing the Tardis, she just always assumed he would tell her. But after weeks of waiting, maybe she needed to say something.

With it still too early to wake up, Martha snuggled back against the Doctor's chest, resolving to say something when they were both awake. She knew the Doctor had never been good at opening up first, so he likely needed a little prodding. She wrapped her arm around his waist and listened to the steady beat of his dual hearts as she drifted back to sleep. 

***

When Martha woke up again, she could hear the buzzing noise of the Doctor's sonic screwdriver. When she opened her eyes, she could see the room was flooded with light and guessed it was likely late into the morning. The Doctor was no longer in bed with her, but sitting on the floor fusing two pieces of wire together.

Martha sat up and rubbed at her eyes, trying to clear away the fog of sleep. “You should have woken me up.” 

The Doctor stopped what he was doing and smiled at her. “It seemed like you needed the rest. But if you’re now awake, can you pass me more of those computer boards over there?”

Martha looked to the other side of the room and saw them stacked up together with what used to be a printer. Martha stepped out of bed and stretched, before grabbing what the Doctor needed and sitting in front of him. 

“Thank you,” he said as he set it down beside him.

Remembering her thoughts from when she woke up earlier, she tentatively started. 

“Doctor…?”

“Yes?” 

Martha bite her lip thinking of the right phrasing before she continued. “If something was bothering you, you would tell me right?” 

A look of surprise flashed across his face but then he dryly said, “Apart from losing the Tardis you mean?” 

Pouting a little Martha replied, “Yes, apart from losing the Tardis.” 

“Only if you promise to do the same,” he replied. 

"I promise," Martha said. “So what can I do to be helpful?” 

But before the Doctor could answer, her stomach grumbled.

Smiling the Doctor said, “Why don't you grab something to eat first.”

"What about you?"

"Can you bring me something," he asked. 

Martha headed downstairs to the kitchen on her own and since the Doctor had apparently forgot he still had a job, she found Noah and was obliged to tell him the Doctor could not work for him for the foreseeable future. Noah did not seem the least bit surprised that the Doctor had apparently quit and he also did not seem to mind much either. Still, Martha offered to help Noah in the Doctor’s place.

So Martha’s days were split between helping both Anna and Noah around the inn during the day and ending with her helping the Doctor in the evening. This happened for almost a week, until one morning she woke up and he was done.

That morning, Martha woke up to the Doctor sitting beside her and staring out at nothing in particular in thought. From a side view, Martha could see lines streaking across his forehead and he looked tense. She silently watched him, wishing again she knew what was going on in his head. 

Seeming to sense her eyes on him, he turned his head to face her with a neutral expression. "I'm done." 

“Done?” Martha asked.

“The sonar, I completed it last night and I know where we have to go,” he explained. 

Getting up onto one elbow, Martha perked up and said, "So you could have the Tardis by the end of the day."

"Yes," he replied not seeming particularly happy.

Confused, Martha asked, "I thought you would be more excited at the prospect of getting the Tardis back."

"I am," he said though he didn’t look or sound like it. 

Martha watched the Doctor thinking he was not acting the way she would have imagined. 

""Is everything okay?" Martha asked.

"Why wouldn't it be?"

"I don't know, you look… unhappy,” Martha observed. 

"I’m not unhappy," the Doctor replied, as he rolled out of bed and said nothing further. 

Martha sat up and stared at him knowing he was basically ending the conversation. She did not like it but she let it go for now.

***

As the sun was still rising across the gentle rolling hills of the Slieve Bloom Mountains, the Doctor and Martha set-out. They did not have an exact location for the signal, but the Doctor said he could use his sonic to pinpoint the location when they were closer. 

So Martha followed the Doctor through the grassy fields, as the soft morning light grew warmer and the mountains loomed high in the distance. They found winding paths which cut through beds of blooming wild flowers, which entered a forest path lined with towering trees covered in moss and low hanging branches. Rock outcrops popped out at unexpected places and waterfalls formed along meandering streams. Once in a while, Martha had to stop and take in the calming beauty of her surroundings, wondering how they could have lived so close to so much beauty without realizing it.

But she knew why. They had both been so focused on their own problems that they never thought to think of anything else. Instead, everything around them had seemed dull and boring when compared to the unimaginable wonders of the galaxy they were cutoff from with the Tardis' disappearance. Martha looked towards the Doctor as a gentle breeze danced through his hair. She could not understand the gloomy mood he had sunk into, but it confirmed he was hiding something. But maybe if she opened up first, he would too. That is what they had promised each other. 

Martha caught up to him so she was walking beside him and said, "This place is beautiful! Not exactly where you would expect to find aliens hiding."

“Maybe they were also drawn to the beautiful landscape,” the Doctor deadpanned.

"I wish we had come out here earlier. It would have made our stay so much better, even if it wasn't so bad," Martha offered.

“Of course, it wasn't so bad," the Doctor said sarcastically. "Except for the part of us being stuck and unable to leave.”

“Of course not that part, but there are moments like now which feel nice,” Martha said smiling. “There were some days I felt like I was living another life, an ordinary normal life. No aliens, no people to save, no worrying about the fate of the world. It was all so ordinary and easy.”

The Doctor slowed down to a stop and turned to face Martha. “Is that what you want? An ordinary life?” 

Martha also came to a stop and faced him, pondering the question and truthfully answered, “No, not at all. I would get too bored. Our stay felt more like a much-needed vacation.” 

"A very human vacation," the Doctor countered with a smirk. 

"Sorry to break it to you but I am very human,” Martha joked.

“I can hardly forget,” the Doctor said. He hesitated for a moment before asking, “When we met again, you didn’t seem to be looking for ordinary or easy.”

“I wasn’t,” Martha admitted. That was the last thing she wanted. 

“So what changed?”

“Apart from you kidnapping me and the Tardis unceremoniously dumping us in Ireland, you mean?” 

Finally cracking a smile, the Doctor replied, “I do not remember you kicking and screaming as you entered the Tardis.” 

“Okay, maybe not kidnapped,” Martha conceded. “I guess… I needed to stop. Have you ever felt like you started running and you could not stop? But then it seemed you couldn’t stop, because you were not ready to face the past? But then someone grabbed you and made you stop and miraculously, the world did not come crashing around you.” 

“I can relate to the feeling,” the Doctor answered.

“You once asked me what happened to change me… I was unhappy and felt like a fraud. I wasn't sure if anything I did was actually for the good of the people I wanted to help."

"Why would you think that. You are the most brilliant doctor I know."

Martha smiled, appreciating the compliment. "Well, I became a doctor to take care of people, but I started questioning all the decisions I had made and why I made them. I started to wonder if I was really doing any good or I was just following orders. So I thought if I left UNIT and started new, I could find a solution. But all I was doing was running away and not finding the answers I needed. Like if I kept moving, it would solve all my problems. Instead, I needed to face up to how I was feeling and sort it out.”

If she was being completely honest, that past also involved the Doctor. She had loved him and it had taken a long time to move on from him. She had gone about moving on by carving out a life of repairing what she felt was broken by meeting him. And then it was trying to save the world without the Doctor. But all that left her with was feeling like all her decisions were only because of the Doctor and not her own motivations or for the people she always professed to care for. That had shaken her belief in herself and what she was doing. It made her feel like a fraud in her job and unable to see how to be the good doctor she had always tried to be.

But now, Martha was beginning to realize that she had been wrong. She had been doing the best she could and helping as many people as she could. Though her motivations may have started out in the wrong place, they had led her somewhere good, even though she could not see it at the time. It was too late to return and get back what she had given up, but she also did not want to go back. She was happy here and now.

"So do you know what you want now?" the Doctor asked.

“I am getting there,” Martha said smiling again.

“What if we stay here until you've sorted it out," he offered. 

“I couldn't do that.” 

“Why not? I'm offering?”

“No,” Martha said shaking her head, which seemed to surprise the Doctor. “You would not be happy here. I know you. You love the new and unexplained, exploring new worlds and meeting new people more than anyone I know. How could you ever be happy being stuck in one place? And definitely not Ballyfin, Ireland of all places.” 

"Yep, that's me," the Doctor scoffed. 

"Plus it would feel like I was still running away if I stayed here. I got the break I needed, but I'm ready to return home," Martha said honestly, even though she could see the Doctor was not happy to hear her say that. "Do you know, you seem to have a habit of appearing whenever I need to escape from my life?"

“And you have a habit of coming into my life when I need someone,” he said in turn. 

“Because you were traveling alone?” she asked.

Before the Doctor could answer, his screwdriver started giving off flashes.

“Why is your sonic doing that?” Martha asked. 

The Doctor looked at his sonic and said, “We've found it. This way.”

The Doctor took off, bringing their conversation to an abrupt end. Martha chased after him and after a few minutes of running, they stood in front of a hillside covered in vines. 

"It says it’s behind this," the Doctor said.

When they got closer they realized a cave entrance was hidden behind the thick overhanging vines. As they pushed through them and entered, they were plunged into darkness except for the light from the luminous green moss covering the walls. 

The Doctor used his sonic to light up the dark space and reveal damp walls which appeared to lead to a dead end a short distance away. 

“Very inviting,” Martha joked as they walked further inside until they reached the end. 

The Doctor placed a hand on the cave wall and said with certainty, “There is something behind here.”

Martha walked up to the wall and examined it, seeing nothing except for solid stone. But when she placed her hand against the stone, she felt a tremor vibrant through the wall. Pulling her hand back in surprise, Martha looked at the Doctor, "Did you feel that?"

"Feel what?" the Doctor asked moving closer to Martha having felt nothing despite also touching the wall.

She placed her hand gingerly back on the stone wall and the Doctor asked her, "Do you feel anything?" 

Martha was not sure, what she had felt before but she could not feel it now. Instead, she was certain she could hear something but was unsure what it was, or what it was saying. It seemed jumbled and confusing but she became sure of something.

“I think I need to touch this place in the wall," Martha said. 

The Doctor stood back and let Martha walked past him and she pushed against the stone. The wall shook and pulled away, opening into a secondary cave. 

Martha turned and smiled at the Doctor, having solved the mystery.

"So my theory about it being a form of telepathy was right," the Doctor said pleased. "And since I am not affected by it, it must be specific to humans or it must only affect species with more primitive brains."

The smile slipped off Martha’s face as she frowned at him instead. She had forgotten he had a bad habit of making disparaging remarks without realizing it. The Doctor looked at her questioningly, oblivious to the cause of her annoyance. But Martha only shook her head and walked in as he followed behind her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: all science in this story is vague and questionable at best. But if Doctor Who writers can get away with it, I can too right.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was so hard to write and took me so much longer than I would have expected. But it’s finally done and I like how it turned out.
> 
> I listened to the [ The Doctor's Theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRrOI7By5fc) and [ All the Strange, Strange Creatures ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEcij0ARkmU) when writing this chapter. 
> 
> Enjoy!

The Doctor and Martha walked through the door and into a circular cave surrounded by nine large pillars. Blue cords ran out from each pillar and extended down to a rectangular metal box which emitted a soft blue glow, and lay at the center of the room. Towards the far side of the room, there were all manner of contraptions and screens which Martha could not fathom their use.

”Any idea what this place is?” Martha asked as she looked around the room.

”Most likely a lab,” the Doctor said as he walked towards the middle of the room.

"What type of lab?" Martha asked.

"No idea, but let's find out," the Doctor said now focused on the metal box in the middle of the room. 

He went to stand over it and Martha followed him, and saw there was a clear glass at the top. When she peered inside, she saw it was filled with a blue luminescent liquid and a shadowy figure lay at the bottom. She thought it looked humanoid, except for the oddly shaped head.

Martha stepped back and took another look around the room. “Remember that legend I told you about, it was called the ‘Salmon of Knowledge’”.

“Oh yes, I remember,” the Doctor said as he took out his sonic and began scanning the length of the chamber.

“There were said to be nine hazelnut trees surrounding a well, and what lay inside the well could give you all the world’s knowledge,” Martha said.

She counted nine pillars which she supposed could be trees, and the orbs were shaped like hazelnuts. So it followed that whatever was inside the chamber was the salmon in the legend.

“Since it seems we have just found the salmon of knowledge, are we about to unlock all the world’s knowledge? That we have found the ability to cheat death,” Martha joked. 

The Doctor put away his sonic and scoffed. “It’s merely a hibernation chamber, likely capable of performing some healing. To the technologically primitive, that could be seen as cheating death.” 

“Well sorry us primitive humans did not know any better,” Martha said sarcastically at the Doctor's continued use of word primitive to describe humans.

Martha turned away from the Doctor and walked to a pillar on the opposite side of the room. She was drawn to it because it was different from the others. All the pillars were covered with some form of moss and glowed with the same soft blue glow as the chamber which stood in the middle of the cave, except the pillar she now stood in front of. Martha walked around it, seeing nothing of note.

“Do you know what is inside the hibernation chamber,” Martha asked. 

“It’s a Silurian,” the Doctor said turning his attention to one of the pillars as well. 

“An alien?” Martha asked not familiar with the species.

“They are not alien.” 

“Then what are they?”

“They were the native species on Earth before humanity,” he answered. 

“What?”

“They were here before humans,” the Doctor explained. “They predicted an asteroid would hit Earth’s surface and make it uninhabitable, so they all went into hibernation chambers underneath the Earth’s surface until it was safe again. But the asteroid never hit Earth and instead was drawn into the Earth’s gravitational field to become the moon. Because of that, the triggers meant to wake the Silurians’ never initiated and they never woke up.” 

Martha thought about what the Doctor had said and it did not add up. They were in a cave, not below the Earth’s surface.

“But this isn't underground," Martha stated.

"Exactly," the Doctor said as he took out his sonic again and scanned the pillar. "And Silurians also live in large clans not alone. So why is this one alone?"

“And what does this place have to do with people going missing?” Martha added.

As Martha watched the Doctor scan the pillar and frown, a realization hit her which the Doctor must have already figured out.

She rushed over to the pillar closest to her and brushed aside the slimy green moss to reveal a face. It’s eyes were closed and it was surrounded by the same blue luminous liquid as the chamber in the center of the room, but it was not the face she was expecting. The figure before her was something she had never seen before, it’s face was covered in reptilian scales. But that was not what was odd, what was odd was it seemed oddly familiar, like she had seen it somewhere before.

But that was impossible, Martha thought, if this was what a Silurian looked like, she had never met one before. So why did it look familiar to her, she questioned herself. But as Martha continued to stare at the face in front of her, it also started to look more human. Martha cleared away more of the moss and she saw the figure was wearing clothes. Not foreign clothing, but regular clothing anyone could buy at the mall.

Martha turned to look at the Doctor, who had moved to the other side of the room with screens, and was fiddling with the controls in front of him.

“Doctor!”, Martha called in shock. “These are people.”

”The people who went missing,” the Doctor confirmed as he continued what he was doing.

”But what happened to them?” Martha asked as she realized why the face looked so familiar. It was the face she had seen on the missing person poster the day they arrived.

When Martha turned back to look at the pillar, she was surprised again when bright yellow eyes stared straight at her. Martha stumbled back, not expecting the piercing gaze of the man who was no longer a man staring at her. As Martha stepped back, she tripped and collided into the pillar behind her, but as her back hit the pillar, it open and she fell inside.

The pillar closed in around her before Martha could do anything.

“Martha are you okay?” the Doctor asked in alarm, having run to her, not expecting a pillar to swallow up his companion.

”I’m fine,” Martha said as she regained her balance and looked around the inside of the enclosed cylindrical chamber. She pushed against what she now realized was a door but nothing happened. Instead, she felt water dripping on her head. When she looked up, a blue liquid began pouring in from the top and flowing down the sides. “Doctor, scratch what I just said. I am not fine. Water or whatever this liquid is, has started coming in.”

“I can see that,” the Doctor said having brushed aside more of the moss to see her clearly.

Martha tried to push against the solid glass walls surrounding her and kick at them, but nothing happened. Instead water continued to rush into the space which was just big enough to fit a full grown man, but as it quickly rose above her ankles, Martha began to fell cramped and claustrophobic.

“Doctor, can get me out of here?” Martha called. 

“I’m working on it,” the Doctor reassured her. He pointed his sonic at her pillar before he turned and pointed it to the one opposite her, but again nothing happened.

“What’s wrong? Can’t you open it?” Martha asked. 

But before he could answer her, the Doctor turned towards the center of the room. Martha also turned to look at what had drawn his attention and saw the hibernation chamber's top sliding open and the Silurian inside stand up.

Looking at him, Martha could only describe him as a reptilian fish or toad which looked nothing like the person she had seen in the adjoining chamber. It had three eyes, with two of them bright yellow with cat-like pupils and the third eye on its forehead a bright red and seeming to pulse. The Silurian stepped out of the chamber and looked at the Doctor and Martha with interest.

The Doctor looked on in surprise but Martha was more surprised when the Doctor called it’s name.

“Tulok!”

“You know me human,” he asked the Doctor. 

“I am not human but yes, I know who you are," the Doctor said seeming surprised. "How did you survive the explosion?”

The last time the Doctor saw the Silurian scientist, he was in his sixth regeneration. Tulok hated humanity and as such, had created a bacteria which would kill off all adult humans and had planned to use human children as a source of food and slave labour. But the Doctor had stopped him with the help of Tulok's lab partner, and had believed he had died in the explosion which had destroyed his lab.

“You know about the explosion? Who are you?” Tulok asked.

“I'm the Doctor," the Doctor answered. "Convinced Charles Darwin I was Albert Einstein.”

“The Doctor?” Tulok asked now also equally surprised. 

“New body,” the Doctor said with a smirk.

Tulok narrowed his eyes in anger as he said, “My plan to retake Earth would have succeeded if not for you! And I would have died if not for this cave. Because of you, I was forced to sleep here for nearly two centuries healing and hiding as I tried to restart the research you destroyed.”

“Well I can't say I’m sorry," the Doctor said shrugging, before becoming more serious. "You also know I cannot let you continue harming the people of this planet."

“I have evolved from wanting to kill them,” Tulok said.

"I've seen your little experiments," the Doctor said.

Tulok gave a sly grin of pleasure as he said, “I thought you would be happy I no longer want to destroy humanity, I'm making them better. After my own kind failed to appreciate my vision for the Earth and betrayed me, I realized I did not need them. Not when I could create a new and better race.”

Tulok’s words only confirmed the horrible truth Martha and the Doctor had uncovered, that he was experimenting on people to create a new Silurian race. She hated to think what happened to the countless people who vanished before this. But Martha also felt rising panic as the water inched past her knees and up towards her waist.

“And did any of these people have any say before you made them your lab rats?" the Doctor said with simmering anger. 

“After all this time, you still can't see humans for what they are. Weak and simple minded. Allowing themselves to be lured into my chambers with basic mind control shows how inferior they are. And it seems I have a new candidate,” Tulok said looking at Martha. 

Martha instinctively recoiled from the look Tulok gave her, as the water inched up her waist. 

The Doctor stepped in front of her, blocking Tulok's view of Martha

"You should join me Doctor, we are better than them. We can do this together. Create a better more evolved world together,” Tulok offered.

"You still underestimate the human race," the Doctor said as he glanced at Martha. "You haven't seen a fraction of how amazing they are. They are more incredible than you could ever imagine and they will achieve more than any of your kind ever will."

Tulok burst into laughter as if the Doctor had just said the funniest thing he had ever heard. "Your admiration for them is still your undoing."

"You're wrong. They show me time and again that my trust in them is never misplaced. You would see it too if you gave them a chance. You just need to stop here and let all these people go," the Doctor said.

"They should feel honoured to be the start of the new Silurian race, who will help me turn every last worthless person on this planet."

"A mindless army is nothing to be proud of in the face of human’s ingenuity and imagination. I'm only giving you one warning. Let my friend and everyone one else go or you won't like how this ends."

Tulok laughed again as if the Doctor was mad.

The Doctor turned around to face Martha as the water was now high enough she had to float to keep her head above water. Martha looked up and saw the top was not far away, and knew she was running out of time. She did not know what would happen when she was completely immersed and she did not want to find out.

“Doctor!” Martha said anxiously.

“Stop what you’re doing and let her go,” the Doctor shouted back at Tulok. 

Tulok only laughed again and said, “You will not stand in my way again Doctor, not this time.”

Tulok turned away and walked towards the screens the Doctor had been fiddling with earlier.

The Doctor turned back to Martha and said, “Martha, you will be okay. I will get you out of there.”

Martha’s head scrapped the ceiling and she knew she had only a minute or less.

“Doctor,” she called again in a panic. 

“I will get you out of there I promise,” the Doctor reassured her. "But the water is going to first fill up in there."

Martha's eyes widened in shock at his words. "What why?"

“Trust me.”

Those were the last words Martha heard before she took her last panicked breath as the liquid completely engulfed her.

She saw the Doctor mouth something but could not hear what he was trying to tell her. So she held on to the Doctor's promise that she should trust him, even as her instinct was to panic as the water seemed to press in all around her.

She quickly became oblivious to everything around her as she struggled to hold her breath until finally she could not any longer. She opened her mouth to gasp for air, but she only felt cool liquid rush into her mouth and nose. Her body screamed for oxygen as she continued to gasp for air and only swallowed more water. Her head began to pound as she felt herself suffocating, feeling alone even though she knew the Doctor was near her. Unable to keep fighting, her eyes rolled back into her head and she sunk into darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big Finish saved me big time, as everything finally came together when I found their episode [Bloodtide](https://www.bigfinish.com/releases/v/bloodtide-647). The Silurians in this story are different from Madam Vastra and the ones the Eleventh Doctor met. Here is a [link](https://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/Silurian?file=Scalesofinjusticesilurian.jpg) to see them.
> 
> As a side note, in my original draft back in the day, I was going to have Silurians eating people (watching too much Hannibal maybe), but it seemed a bit gruesome now. Of course, little did I know that Silurians in Bloodtide actually did eat people (shiver). But I think genetic modifications seemed like a better alternative and worked better for the overall story.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I listened to the Piano Cover of [ And I'm Here ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEL-8KsDpQQ) by Kim Kyung-hee off the soundtrack of the Korean drama Goblin.

When Martha opened her eyes, it was to an endless sea of blue. Her eyes watched as white patches floated across her vision and a line of green swayed into her view. She blinked, trying to focus on the muddled image before her eyes, before she finally realized she was looking up at the blue sky.

The Doctor came into her line of sight, leaning over her with a mixture of relief and concern written on his face. “You’re awake.”

“What happened?” Martha asked groggily, feeling the cold damp ground beneath her and something draped over her body.

“How do you feel?” the Doctor asked, leaving her own question unanswered. 

“My head hurts.”

“Is that all?”

“I think so.”

The Doctor's concern faded away as he smiled, “That’s good.”

Martha frowned not sharing his relief. “Can you help me sit up?” 

“Of course,” the Doctor said placing one hand on her arm and the other on her back to get her into a sitting position.

The Doctor’s jacket slide off her shoulders as she sat up and felt her head begin to spin. Martha closed her eyes until she overcome the dizziness, before looking around at her surroundings. They were in an open area with trees surrounding them. She looked behind her and saw vines cascading down the side of a mountain to the ground. It was then she remembered. 

Remembered that there was a cave entrance hidden behind those vines. What they had found in that cave. The fear as water rushed in around her. Of being unable to breath. Of falling, falling into blackness.

A shiver ran through Martha's body as she felt herself becoming light headed, so she closed her eyes again and took a slow breath. 

“Are you okay,” the Doctor asked again with concern filling his voice.

Martha opened her eyes and nodded, but she could still see the worry in the Doctor’s eyes. “You don't have to worry, I'm fine.”

She smiled to reassure him further and she saw him visibly relax.

“What happened? How did we get here?” Martha asked. 

“I brought you here,” the Doctor answered without elaborating further.

“Yes, but what happened? The last thing I remember was being trapped and...,” Martha paused feeling queasy just thinking about it. But she was worried about the other people who were trapped with her. She needed to know they were safe. “How did we get out? Where is everyone else?”

The Doctor seemed to hesitate before he spoke. "They are not here.” 

“Yes, but where are they?” Martha insisted. 

The Doctor bit his lower lip, hesitating before he spoke. “I changed a few things before Tulok woke up. Like breaking the trance he had everyone under."

"That's why he opened his eyes," Martha said remembering the piercing yellow eyes which had bore into her.

"I made sure that when one chamber was opened, all of them opened," the Doctor said.

"So you freed everyone," Martha added.

"Yes, instead of a brainwashed army, Tulok got some very angry people who wanted revenge. But what I didn’t realize before, was why Tulok had been spacing out the kidnappings. Why there weren't more people there with him... It was because he had not yet found a way to keep his army alive after completing the mutations. It was the regenerative fluid keeping them alive and they did not last long outside of it.”

“So you’re saying... they are all dead?!” Martha asked in shock. 

The Doctor slowly nodded his head. “Once they were free, they refused to let me help them. They did not want to be trapped and experimented on anymore. So knowing they could never return home, all they wanted was to be free, even if it meant for just a few minutes... I’ve sealed away the cave so no one will ever find it again.” 

Martha dropped her head in remorse. “If I hadn't been careless and got myself trapped, we could have-”

“There was nothing we could have done,” the Doctor said stopping her. "If it wasn't for you, we would not have found Tulok's lab as quickly as we did. You prevented countless other people from having the same fate.”

Martha looked up at the Doctor with a pinched smile which she knew looked halfhearted. She could never stop the guilt which always plagued her when she failed to save someone. She had grudgingly made peace with the truth that she could not save everyone a long time ago, no matter how hard she tried. But it still did not make it any easier. She looked at the Doctor and wondered how he dealt with those feelings. How many people had he lost?

They both sat in silence and stared out at the green forest which still looked as beautiful as it had before. But as the Doctor looked up at the sky and sighed, he saw that grey clouds were now rolling in across the once clear blue sky. The sun had also sunk lower and was now casting long shadows across the forest floor, as branches swayed in the breeze and picked up fallen leaves.

Martha did not know yet, but the Doctor had already made up his mind to tell her the truth he had been keeping from her since the day they met. He had tried to pretend everything was okay, that it was okay to hide away in a small village. But Martha and today’s events showed him he was being selfish. Even by doing nothing, he was still hurting someone.

"You were right," the Doctor said. 

“Right about what?” Martha asked looking back at the Doctor in confusion. 

"I could never be happy stuck in one place," he explained. “No matter how much I tried to hide.”

The Doctor watched Martha as her eyes became pensive. For a moment he lost his nerve again and sidetracked, "Though this place wasn't so bad."

“It was a bit of vacation too then,” Martha joked without humour, hiding a growing feeling of dread.

“Maybe I needed one too,” the Doctor replied dryly. Echoing her words from earlier in the day, he continued, “I think I also needed to stop and see that running away was not the answer.”

“What were you running away from?” Martha asked carefully. 

The Doctor paused considering his answer before he spoke.

“Before I met you again, I had been traveling alone for a while,” he started. “I thought it was the right thing to do.”

The Doctor remembered how sure of himself he had been. How confident he was that being alone was the answer.

“But something happened,” the Doctor said, remembering Adelaide’s voice as she said, _‘This is wrong, Doctor. I don't care who you are. The Time Lord Victorious is wrong’_. “I did something and it went wrong. I needed…” 

Again unable to continue, the Doctor covered his face and took a deep breath thinking about how wrong things could have gone and it would have been his fault. He would have never forgiven himself. 

It was then he also remembered Donna, his best friend. Even on the first day they met, she had known him better than he had known himself. Her words came back to him as well. _‘Find someone. Because sometimes I think you need someone to stop you’_. He knew he needed Martha. And the only way she would stay, was if he was honest with her.

Martha’s heart lurch in pain as she watched the Doctor struggling to tell her what he had been hiding for the past month. In all that time, it was only now she realized just how terrible it must be. 

“Doctor, what is it?” she asked gently.

Martha watched him thinking he was about to cry, but he looked up at the sky and recomposed himself before he spoke again. Martha forced herself to wait until he was ready to start taking, feeling more anxious as the seconds ticked by. 

But even as she readied herself, she was unprepared when the Doctor spoke again. 

“I'm going to die,” he said as fact. 

Martha felt her heart stop and her body go rigid at his words.

“What?” was all she could barely breathe out, sure she must have been mistaken. The Doctor dying did not make sense.

The Doctor’s eyes briefly settled on her before they shifted away, “I was told, “He will knock four times”. That was a prophecy. Knock four times and then…,” 

The last words seemed to die on his tongue as he failed to complete the sentence. 

“But I thought... you told me Time Lords can’t die? You told me they regenerate,” Martha reasoned. She convinced herself it could not be true. He could not die, he must have been mistaken. 

"We can die. You saw it yourself with the Master," the Doctor said. "But even if I regenerate it feels like dying. Everything I am dies. Some new man saunters away and I’m dead.”

As he said the final words, his eyes glazed over and that was when she felt hopelessness overtake her heart. Not because it was true, but because the Doctor seemed resigned to his fate. He really believed he was going to die. She had never seen him so hopeless before. 

Tears stung her eyes as she imagined the Doctor dying, but she quickly blinked them away, still unable to believe it.

“Can’t you… can’t you stop the prophecy? Fight it?” Martha asked. 

The Doctor took another deep breath before he spoke again, sounding defeated which broke her heart further. “I tried running away but I do not like where that lead me. I did something I should never have done. I could have caused unimaginable damage. Even now,” the Doctor said shaking his head. “I do not want to keep running, not when it makes me become something I hate.” 

“So what are you going to do?” Martha asked. 

“I don’t know,” the Doctor admitted. 

Martha remembered earlier when he had asked her to stay here in Ireland with him, only now realizing that it was the Doctor’s way of trying to run away from the prophecy. She closed her eyes regretting her blunt answer and instead telling him she wanted to go home. If she had known the reason behind the request, she would have said yes and stayed with him. Instead, she had felt mildly flattered to have the Doctor want to stay in this place with her. But now she knew it had nothing to do with her. 

That knowledge somehow managed to make her feel lower than she already felt. But that did not matter. She did not care what the Doctor’s intentions had been, if only she could save him. 

“You said we could stay here. If that stops the prophecy, I’ll do it,” Martha said. “Staying here won’t hurt anyone.”

The Doctor gave her a sad smile before he spoke. “It would hurt you.”

“I don’t care about me” Martha said with resolve. “If it means saving you, then I don’t care.”

The Doctor took hold of Martha’s hands and held them in his. “I care. Neither of us would be happy here. I don’t want to be someone who hurts the people I care about, I don’t want to live like that. No matter how much time I get. And you deserve better.”

"But I want you to live," Martha said feeling herself getting chocked up. She loved him and had never imagined a possibility of the Doctor dying. She knew now she did not want to live in any universe where he did not also exist. Even if he was not by her side, the knowledge that he was somewhere in the great wide universe with his Tardis, had always been enough.

She looked down as a tear escaped from her eyes and rolled down her cheek. The Doctor wiped the tear away and said. "I know."

Martha lifted her head back up with conviction and said, "I won't let you die, I promise I'll help you.”

“Come here,” the Doctor said opening up his arms.

Martha rose to her knees and wrapped her arms around the Doctor’s shoulders as he melted into her embrace. He pulled her close to him and wrapped his arms around her waist, burying his face in the crook of her neck.

Martha rested her head against the Doctor's and held him tight as if afraid he might disappear if she did not cling to him. She squeezed her eyes shut to stop any tears from falling and focused all her thoughts on the man she held in her arms and begging the universe to not let him die.

They held on to each other, comforting each other, until the tears dried in her eyes and the tension dissolved from his body. But even then, they continued to hold on to one another, knowing no words could completely express how they both felt.

But even as the Doctor felt helpless to stop what was going to happen, he felt grateful. 

“Thank you,” the Doctor said slightly muffled against her body. “I never say it enough.” 

“I didn’t do anything,” Martha said in barely a whisper. She did not think she deserved those words at this moment. 

“For listening, for being here,” the Doctor replied. He was happy she was back in his life. Happy that he did not have to face this alone. 

When the Doctor pulled away from her and she sat back on her heels, he tried to smile to reassure her, but Martha could see through it. She reached out her hand and stroked his cheek, suppressing what she wanted to ask him. 

“I am okay,” he said as he enclosed his hand over hers. “I just needed you to know.”

“Thank you for telling me,” Martha said.

The Doctor smiled again though it still looked strained. He released her hand and Martha let it drop into her lap.

Seeming to miss her touch, the Doctor reached out and took Martha’s hand in his again. 

“You said you liked this place right,” the Doctor asked. 

Martha nodded despite not caring about her surroundings anymore.

“Then before we leave, let’s stay here a while and enjoy it,” the Doctor said. He lay down and put his head in her lap, exhaling softly.

Martha adjusted so she was more comfortable and looked down at him questioningly, “Here?”

Trying to sound light-hearted he said, “No time like the present right.”

He intertwined their fingers and held their hands close to his chest.

“Isn’t this what people do for fun, lazing around on the grass,” the Doctor tried to joke.

Martha smiled down at him, if just to be ironic, “We like to call it relaxing.”

But then she had to look away from him, feeling her heart compress in agony again. She looked up at the sky, noticing the clouds were tinged with grey, hinting at the possibility of rain. 

Martha looked back down at the Doctor and saw he was watching her. 

“I am glad you found me again,” she said sincerely. Even if she did not know how to save him yet, she was glad he was not alone anymore and she would be there for him.

“I am glad too,” he said. "But since I'm being honest, I have something to confess.”

"It can't be anything worse than what you've already told me."

“No, but it’s about the sonar we built,” he said. 

“What about it?” 

“I could have built it in a matter of hours but I stalled,” he confessed.

“You what?”

“Did you really think it would take me a week to build it?"

“And here I was thinking you were about to apologize," Martha said trying to add humour.

And it worked. The Doctor genuinely smiled, "I'm not exactly sorry.”

“I know, you weren’t ready to leave?” Martha guessed.

He nodded, "And I was afraid you'd leave me once we figured out how to get back to the Tardis."

Martha turned away from him feeling guilty, because he had been right. She had planned to leave. But now she understood why he had been upset earlier.

The Doctor squeezed her hand and Martha looked back down to him. "I understand if you still feel like you have to leave."

But Martha shook her head. "I meant what I said before. I'm not going anywhere.”

The Doctor nodded again in appreciation, needing to hear her say that.

They stayed in the shadowy forest for a while until, they knew they had to head back as the clouds overhead became more ominous. They took their time walking back through the trees budded with blossoms and back out into the fields of wild flowers.

They walked through the sea of purple wild flowers to the top of the hill which over looked Ballyfin village. The sleepy quiet village where nothing seemed to change, except for the sudden appearance of a blue police box, which sat exactly where Martha and the Doctor had last seen her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I stole the Doctor’s café scene from Wilfred in The End of Time. In the show, the Doctor says “I need” but never finished his sentence. I always imagined him saying “I need someone”. And of course, that someone could have been Martha. I also switched around the Doctor’s dialogue in the café because I thought it made more sense the way I wrote it here. I also left it vague but Tulok did not survive either.
> 
> Thanks to everyone whose read my fic and left kudos. We are half way through this story but I still have a lot planned. Please leave a comment and let me know what you’ve thought so far.
> 
> Thanks!


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone for continuing to read my fic, for commenting and giving kudos. Thank you!

As the late afternoon sun began its descent across the horizon, the Doctor and Martha stood at the top of the hill overlooking Ballyfin village. Their focus drawn to the blue telephone box sitting in an open field.

“My beautiful ship," the Doctor exclaimed in a mixture of relief and excitement at seeing his beloved ship again. 

He smiled and took Martha’s hand in his. "Let's go home."

Martha nodded in agreement and they both took off running down the hill towards the Tardis. When they reached it, the Doctor opened the door and walked inside with Martha following in behind him.

The Doctor slowly ascended the ramp towards the Tardis console, recommitting everything about her back to memory.

“I never doubted you would return to me,” he said. Finally giving into his excitement, he ran around the console and placed both hands on it and exclaimed, “I missed you.”

Martha almost laughed at the Doctor's childish excitement, feeling a familiar warmth flood her as she said a silent hello to the Tardis.

The Doctor spotted his long coat slung over the console room chair and he ran across to it. He swung it back on and said, “I also missed you too."

“I could have used that the day we arrived,” Martha said remembering how chilly that first night had been, though it now seemed a lifetime ago.

The Doctor next turned to the Tardis screens and started working on them. 

Martha walked across to stand beside him and asked, “What are you doing?” 

“I am making sure there are no spatial distortions, time disturbances or temporal interferences which would disrupt the Tardis controls,” the Doctor replied. “Though I can't find anything. I also don't understand why Tulok's signal would interfere with the Tardis.”

“So you're saying there was no reason for the Tardis to kick us out and strand us here?” Martha asked. 

“I can't find any,” the Doctor replied still looking at his screens.

“Maybe she thought we both needed a vacation as well,” Martha said shrugging. 

Looking up at the Tardis, the Doctor said, “Well we don’t need one anymore, you hear me.” 

The Tardis hummed in response and to Martha it seemed like an acknowledgement which seemed to satisfy the Doctor. 

“So the Tardis isn’t going to leave us again if we step out for a bit?” Martha asked. 

“I don’t think so, why?”

“We do still have a nuclear reactor in our room,” Martha reminded him.

“Oh yes, I forgot about that.”

“And it would be nice to say goodbye to Noah and Anna. Not to mention we did promise to replace a few things we took around the Inn,” Martha replied.

“Okay then, one more trip out,” the Doctor said. They started walking out but the Doctor abruptly stopped to turn and reprimand the Tardis. “We are just stepping out for a short visit. No disappearing okay. We do not need another vacation.”

Again the Tardis hummed in agreement before they left.

They made their way back to the Inn, but the Doctor took them on a detour to an ATM first. After looking around to make sure no one was watching, the Doctor pointed his sonic screwdriver at it and money started pouring out of the machine and into his hands. 

Surprised Martha whispered, “Have you been able to do that this the whole time?” 

The Doctor gave a non-committal answer as he began stuffing money into his pockets.

“Why did you even bother getting a job?” Martha asked. 

“I thought it would be fun for a bit. But maybe next time I’ll try working in a shop. I’ve always liked those little name tags they give you,” the Doctor answered. 

Martha shook her head in disbelief until a thought occurred to her. “Do you do this type of thing often?”

“Sometimes I give them lottery tickets," the Doctor answered

Martha shook her head again and said nothing else.

When the Doctor thought he had enough money, which was way more than necessary, they headed for the Inn. When they arrived, luckily both Anna and Noah were at the front desk and were more than a little surprised when the Doctor dumped a stack of money from his pockets onto their counter. At first, they both refused it, saying it was too much, but Martha and the Doctor convinced them to take it all, which they accepted gratefully. 

The Doctor and Martha next went up to their room and got to work dismantling the reactor, which took surprisingly little time when compared to the days it took to build. Afterwards, they said their good byes and parted ways. 

As they headed back outside, the sun had almost set and dark clouds hung low overhead. They could hear the distant rumbling of thunder and feel the heaviness in the air that promised a storm.

As they started walking down the deserted paved streets, they felt the first scattering of droplets begin to fall. Martha stopped and looked up to the heavens, shielding her face with a hand as the raindrops began to fall steadily. “Maybe we should have asked for an umbrella."

“Are you afraid of getting a little wet,” the Doctor teased as he continued to walk unperturbed. "The Tardis is not that far.”

Martha did not think 'little' was the right word choice as she dropped her hand and jogged to catch up to him. And as if on cue, the heavens opened up and began pouring down on them. Before they could find cover, they were soaked through.

“Come on, I’ll race you to the Tardis,” Martha said and without waiting for the Doctor, she took off running. 

“That’s cheating,” the Doctor shouted at her back still only watching her run.

Martha turned around and yelled back, “At this rate, you’re going to lose.”

Martha started running again, enjoying the feel of the warm spring rain and exertion which helped distract her thoughts. She heard the splashing footsteps of the Doctor behind her and turned around to see he was about to catch up to her.

As he passed her, the Doctor turned to run backwards with a cocky smile, “I don’t think there is any chance of me losing.” 

“It’s because you have such long legs,” Martha retorted as she saw the distant light of the Tardis through the rain.

But the ground underneath their feet morphed from a smooth paved surface into uneven grass and mud, and the Doctor not paying attention lost his footing. He began to fall backwards but Martha reached out her hand and he grabbed hold. He managed to stop his fall and instead caused Martha to fall into him. The Doctor caught her in his arms and steadied her back on her feet. 

“You okay?” he asked. 

“Yeah, though I'm starting to wonder if your long legs aren't more of a liability now," Martha teased.

The Doctor looked down and smiled in response with his hair flattened down against his forehead as the rain slowed down to a steady drizzle. Martha fought the urge to reach up and push his hair away from his forehead, having half-promised to stop playing with it. She smiled thinking of that morning before she suddenly wondered how many more moments like that she had left with him. Of how much time with the Doctor she had before all she had left were memories.

The smile instantly slipped from her lips and she stepped away from the Doctor. He noticed the sudden change and was about to say something but Martha spoke first. “Don’t you think I deserve a reward for saving you from becoming a muddy mess?"

The Doctor eyed her for a moment before he smiled again and said, "What if I let you have a head start?"

“You could just let me win,” Martha suggested instead.

The Doctor pinched her cheek playfully and Martha scrunched her face in mock annoyance but it only caused the Doctor to snort in laughter.

“That would be too easy,” he said smiling. 

“Okay, I will take the head start then,” Martha said with an exaggerated sigh.

She started running again and the Doctor waited a few beats before following after her. But the uneven and slippery ground slowed Martha down and before reaching the Tardis, she realized the Doctor would catch up to her again.

So spotting a large puddle in front of her, she decided to have some fun. Martha picked up speed and jumped right into it, causing water and mud to fly everywhere.

Realizing too late what she was doing, the Doctor did not stop in time and was splashed all across his front with mud.

Martha turned to look at her handy work and burst into laughter.

“That’s playing dirty,” the Doctor said as he unsuccessfully tried to wipe off the mud.

“I’m only having a little fun,” Martha said trying to stifle the laughter.

“I’ll show you fun,” the Doctor said before retaliating by kicking mud in her direction.

Martha turned away from him to try and protect herself but mud went flying everywhere and ended up getting on her face.

"Whose playing dirty now?" Martha asked as she wiped the mud off her cheek. The Doctor seemed surprised at how effective his kicks were for only a moment before also bursting into laughter. 

As Martha attempted to get back at him by kicking mud back in his direction, she slipped. The Doctor lunged forward to try and stop her fall, but he also slipped and they both ended up falling onto the mud covered ground.

Martha wanted to be annoyed but she could not help laughing at how ridiculous their current situation was.

"This is so stupid," she said as she closed her eyes and looked up, feeling the nettling sting of rain drops which peppered her face.

“Says the person who started this all,” the Doctor said stomping his feet and causing water and mud to splash around them.

“You’re not helping,” Martha said as she opened her eyes and tried to shield herself.

The Doctor stopped and stood up. He wiped his hand on the part of his shirt which was still clean and offered a hand to her. “Here, let me help you up.”

Martha took his hand and got up out of the mud, knowing she must look horrible despite the rapidly fading light. The humour of the situation having disappeared.

“So what penalty do you get for getting us both covered in mud?” The Doctor asked.

"What?" Martha asked looking up at him.

“You did get a reward earlier,” he reminded her. 

"Says the person who failed to stop us from falling," Martha mumbled. “Can’t we just call it even?”

The Doctor laughed in disbelief and said, “Is that your best offer after how hard you’ve tried win.”

“I think if we consider how we both look, we both lost,” Martha reasoned. 

The Doctor watched her for a second before he answered. "Okay then."

“And if we don’t take it slower, one of us will end up falling again,” Martha cautioned.

“Agreed," the Doctor nodded.

Martha turned around to looked back at Ballyfin village. Lights dotted each building and shone brightly through the hazy mist which had settled on it. A small part of her longed to go back. Wished to return to the day before or the week before or the week before that. When her worries seemed simpler and more manageable.

“It’s hard to believe we actually spent a month here,” Martha said knowing she would probably never return again. 

The Doctor had also turned around to look at the village as the rain continued to fall around them. "It is hard to believe isn't it."

But beside him, Martha slowly took a step back and another and another, slowly drawing closer to the Tardis. Before turning and beginning to run again, sure the Doctor would not catch up to her now. 

By the time the Doctor turned around and saw her running, he knew she had played him.

“Now that’s definitely cheating,” he shouted running after her. 

Martha reached the doors and shouted back to him in triumph, “I win.”

She walked into the Tardis in triumph as the Doctor came up running behind her. He could not believe he had fallen for her simply trick and she certainly seemed to find it funny by the smug look on her face. 

“I didn’t know you were such a cheat,” the Doctor said with mock offense.

“I didn’t know you were so gullible,” Martha answered with a smile which did not seem to reach her eyes. Her eyes scanned the Doctor and she laughed, “You look horrible.”

The Doctor looked down at himself as he dripped water onto the metallic floor of the console room. His shoes were caked in mud and there was mud running up his pants and coat, and onto his chest. But as he looked at Martha, he smiled thinking they looked quite the pair. She was also covered in mud and her hair was a mess of curls which framed her face.

“Speak for yourself,” he retorted. “You look like a drowned cat.” 

Martha scrunched her face in offence which only caused the Doctor to laugh as he thought how much more adorable it made her look. He wanted to ruffle her hair but Martha swatted his hand away.

"Okay, I take the last part back," he said backing off.

“A shower would be nice,” Martha conceded as she looked down at the mess which were her clothes, knowing she was going to throw them out.

“And probably some rest too,” the Doctor added more for Martha’s benefit than his own.

The Doctor ran both his hands through his wet hair before messy it around again to get some of the water out.

Martha watched him do it, wondering how unfair it was that he could look so attractive doing such a simple action when she looked like a drowned cat.

Clearing her throat, Martha agreed, "Yes, that’s probably wise."

But the Doctor had realized something Martha had not. He walked over to the console to buy himself some time to think before he spoke again. He slowly worked the Tardis and set her to adrift idly in space.

“You’ve got your own room back,” the Doctor stated simply as he turned to face Martha so he could gauge her response. They were back in the Tardis there was no reason for them to share a room anymore.

Martha seemed to look at him sharply for a moment, realizing what that meant. 

“And so do you,” she said.

The Doctor puzzled over what Martha meant by that statement. Wondering if she expected them to go back to their separate rooms?

But neither of them said anything or took any action to leave. 

“And I'm sure the Tardis does not appreciate us dripping water all over her,” Martha commented, trying to fill the silence which had fallen between them.

“I am sure she doesn’t,” the Doctor agreed still trying to gauge what she wanted.

Martha nodded her head as if thinking about something. And when she took a step to leave, the Doctor assumed she had made her decision until she stopped again. He looked at her expectantly.

“Doctor,” Martha said.

“Yes?” 

“About what you said before… the prophecy you mentioned. Did they say when?” Martha asked hesitantly.

That was not what the Doctor had expected her to ask but he answered. He shook his head and said. “They never said.”

Martha nodded her head, seeming unsure of herself.

“Okay… good night then Doctor,” Martha said. 

“Good night Martha,” he replied stretching his lips into a smile. 

Martha turned to leave but the Doctor stopped her this time.

“Wait!” he called.

"Yes!" Martha said turning around and looking at him expectantly. 

The Doctor looked at her blankly, having spoken without thinking, only knowing that he had not wanted her to leave. 

“You won the race,” he blurted out. 

Martha brows furrowed in confusion at the statement, “Yeah?” 

“What do you want as a prize?” he asked. 

Martha started at him blankly. “I never really thought about winning anything.”

“Okay…,” he said scrambling again and not knowing what to say. “Let me know if you think of something.”

Martha nodded again, giving him a tight smile and staring at him for a moment before she turned away again.

Martha's legs carried her away from the Doctor, not daring to turn around as she purposefully walked out of the console room. Only once she was alone in the corridor which lead to her room, did her steps become unsure and unbalanced until she stopped. She turned around to look back in the direction of the console room feeling disappointed.

When she arrived in her room, she immediately stripped off her wet muddy clothes and entered the shower. 

She made the water as hot as she could stand before stepping in. She let the hot water wash away the dirt and cold which had begun to seep into her bones. She only wished it would also wash away the creeping feeling which was beginning to build up within her. After spending way longer than she should have in the shower, Martha finally turned off the water and quickly toweled dry and plaited her hair before wrapping it up.

When she re-entered her room, it felt still and quiet. Empty. She ignored the silence as she grabbed some clothes to sleep in. She turned off the lights and crawled into bed. 

It had been a long and tiring day, and Martha had hoped the exhaustion of the day would mean she would immediately drift to sleep. But instead, her thoughts drifted back to the Doctor.

She exhaled loudly into the quiet space, hearing nothing but the sound of her own breath. She had been making an effort to be more cheerful and playful around the Doctor to stop herself from thinking about what he had said. About the four words which were never far from her mind. _‘I’m going to die.’_

Martha shook her head as if trying to dislodge the words from her memory, even though it was pointless. So instead she closed her eyes and put her arm over her face, feeling unease and something else she could not yet name. It was easy to put on an act when there was an audience. But now that she was alone, it was hard to hide her feelings from herself.

Martha thought back to the past month she had spent with the Doctor. She knew she had taken that time for granted. That she had let herself get used to being with him. Working with him, eating together, laughing together, sleeping beside him, being held by him. It’s why she had known she had to leave.

She tossed over to her side knowing it was because she would miss him, like she did now. That it would only get harder the longer she stayed. But now she was finding it hard to imagine a life without the Doctor. She could not stop thinking about it.

She felt tears begin to sting her eyes again, as she again tossed restlessly onto her other side. Instead her mind unhelpfully thought back to everything the Doctor had said about regenerating. The prophecy did not need to be the end for the Doctor, even if that could be true too. But what would that mean? A completely different man taking his place. How would that change things between them. Would he still want her to stay? 

Martha let out a deep breath as she tried to control her emotions which were beginning to overwhelm her. But as she looked at the empty side of her bed, it made her feel alone. The feeling of longing swept all over her, leaving her almost breathless, as tears began to fall down her face. The longing only grew at the realization that the Doctor would still not be beside her when she woke up. Knowing that his presence alone would be enough comfort for her. She wanted to crawl out of her bed and go to him. But more than that, she wanted the Doctor to walk through her door to look for her himself. 

She unconsciously turned her head to look at the door, as if expecting a knock at any moment. But of course, there was no knock. She looked up at the ceiling as tears streamed down her face, wishing she could reach across the Tardis and see into the Doctor’s mind. Just for a moment, to see what he was thinking. 

Was he thinking about her now? Was he okay? Did he feel her absence as well? Did he miss her?

She looked across at her door again, knowing it would be a long night.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is longer than I originally planned it to be. But what can you do.

When Martha woke up, it was to the sound of shrill ringing. She reluctantly opened her eyes and looked around at her surroundings, remembering she was back in her bedroom in the Tardis.

She sighed and closed her eyes, feeling an unusually strong headache starting as her phone continued to ring. She had completely forgotten she had it and wondered why the battery had not died yet. Still, she ignored it and lay in bed until it stopped. But after a few seconds, it started ringing again.

Annoyed, Martha rolled out of bed and walked across the room to pick it up. She looked at the screen and saw her mother’s name flashing across it.

“Hello?” Martha said and listened. “Yes mum, I can hear you.”

“Sorry, I wasn't ignoring you. I’ve been busy.”

Martha walked back to her bed and flopped back down as she spoke.

“I know, I know. I should have checked my messages and returned your calls.”

“When I’m coming home?... Soon.”

“Yes I know it’s almost Christmas.”

“I promise I’ll be there.”

“Okay I will. Say hi to everyone for me.”

“Bye.”

Martha hung up and looked at the screen again to see there were two more missed calls from her mum and a number of messages. But she also saw from the date, that barely a day had passed, in her time, since the Doctor reappeared in her life.

She dropped her hand on the bed and looked up at the ceiling. If she went home right now, everything would be exactly the same. As if she had not lived a month in the future. But so much had changed.

She picked up her phone again and looked at the time. It was still early, but she was done with laying in bed and she was thirsty.

Martha got up, to head to the kitchen, but she caught sight of herself in the mirror. She looked tired and her eyes were puffy from crying herself to sleep. She headed to the bathroom and hid away as best she could, the signs she had been crying, in case she ran into the Doctor. Once satisfied, she headed to the Tardis kitchen.

“Good morning,” the Doctor said surprising her when she entered.

“Good morning,” Martha said trying to sound more cheerful and awake than she felt.

The Doctor was sitting at the table drinking a cup of tea, with a pot in front of him.

Martha walked across the room and poured herself a cup of water which she started gulping down.

“There is food on the stove," the Doctor told her.

Martha tried to respond but almost chocked as she tried to speak while still swallowing, and instead ended up in a coughing fit.

“Are you okay?” the Doctor said standing up, but Martha waved her hand in apology to stop him from getting up as she coughed.

"I’m okay,” she managed to breath out. “Thanks.”

Martha got a plate and dished out some food. But before she sat down, the Doctor offered, "There is still some tea as well if you want."

“Yes, thanks,” Martha said taking a cup as well before sitting down across from him. She poured herself a cup of tea and took a sip as she glanced at the Doctor.

“Sleep well?” she asked looking at him over her cup.

“Yep, great,” he replied with a smile.

“Good… I did too,” Martha lied as she stared down into her cup.

She wondered what response she had expected, but the disappointment she felt told her, that was not it. But then she chastised herself, they were friends, nothing more. And it would not be fair to impose her feelings on the Doctor.

“Are you sure? You still look tired,” he observed.

“It's because I have a small headache,” Martha said as she continued to stare down at her tea to hid her disappointment. Choosing to focus on eating.

As Martha fell silent and seemed to be concentrating on her food, the Doctor stared at her wondering why she seemed out of sorts. He could see she looked tired but wondered whether it was more. He knew she had been initially shocked when he told her about the prophecy of his death, but she had seemed to take it well.

Absentmindley, the Doctor picked up his cup to take a sip but it was empty. He looked at it before looking at Martha again, who was still looking down. Feeling dejected, he put down the cup and filled it up again.

After a stretch of silence, the Doctor asked, “What's on your mind?”

Martha looked up and stretched her lips into a smile before saying, “Nothing really.”

The Doctor seemed to be giving her a look but Martha ignored it.

“Do you have anything planned today?” she asked.

The Doctor had nothing planned, his mind having being focused on other things.

“I am going to stay in the Tardis," the Doctor said, stretching out his words as he decided what to say as he was saying it. "I've been putting off doing some repairs. You could help me... only if you want. But if you want to get some more rest, that's okay too.”

“Of course. I'll help.”

The Doctor smiled knowing he did not actually need to do any repairs but Martha did not know that. But it also had been a while since he had taken a look under the console.

Martha looked back down at her plate which was still filled with food and realized she was not actually hungry. She mostly seemed to be pushing the food around.

She looked back up and said, “You don’t have to wait for me to finish if you have a lot to do.”

“I don’t mind, I can wait,” the Doctor said quickly.

“I’ll be quick then,” Martha said returning her concentration back to her food, as she tried to force some of it down.

“It’s okay, take your time. I’m not in a rush," he told her.

The Doctor stopped himself from sighing. He had been unable to sleep all night and had eventually wandered into the kitchen, unable to continue staring at the ceiling. He regretted letting Martha leave the previous night and had hoped to talk to her about it. But looking at her now, he knew it was not the right time. Not when he suddenly felt ignored.

When Martha was done, the Doctor helped her clean up and they both headed to the Tardis console. The Doctor opened up the floor paneling and slide inside, while Martha propped herself against the console and passed him whatever tools he needed.

She asked him more about what he had been doing before they met again. Previously, he had been evasive about that time, but now he talked about it at length. He spoke about meeting Jackson Lake in Victorian London and facing the Cybermen. Before returning to Earth and being transported through a portal to the planet San Helios on one of London’s red buses.

"Do you know UNIT blamed terrorists?" Martha said. "My sister was afraid to ride the bus for weeks."

"Not really, I left straight after," the Doctor said from under the console. "Can you pass me the wretch?"

Martha took the spanner the Doctor held out and reached into the tool box to grab the wretch.

"But I knew something seemed fishy about their story," Martha said, wondering at how naive she had once been to the government’s cover ups. "Where did you go after that?"

"I went to Mars but it wasn't much fun," he said. "Then I met you."

“And what were you doing on Earth?” Martha asked curious.

The Doctor fell silent for a moment before he slide out from underneath the console and looked at her.

“What?” she asked when he did not answer.

The Doctor’s eyes suddenly narrowed as he looked at her. “Are you sure you're okay? You look-,”

"I told you, I'm fine," Martha said dismissively despite still feeling exhausted and her headache getting worse.

The Doctor frowned but dropped it. Instead he asked, “Where do you want to go? Anyone you would like to meet?”

Without hesitating Martha said, “Nefertiti!”

“That was quick.”

“Well she is an obvious choice being one of the greatest queens in human history. Who wouldn’t want to meet her? Plus, I’ve been asking you to take me to Egypt for ages now,” Martha said.

“So you’ve said. Who else? Let’s say in the 19th Century.”

Martha thought for a moment before she answered. “Mary Eliza Mahoney."

“A pioneer of her field. The first African-America woman to study and train as a professional nurse and who paved the way for other women of colour to do the same,” the Doctor said with praise.

"She is the reason I became interested in medicine," Martha confessed.

“You know, I always thought you would ask to meet Hippocrates.”

“Because I’m a doctor?”

“Well yes,” the Doctor said as if it was obvious.

But Martha scoffed. “He may be the Father of Modern Medicine but a lot of what he practiced was wrong and actually harmful to his patients. I don’t think I could stand by quietly as he practiced his archaic medicine.”

“Fair point,” the Doctor conceded knowing she was right, but also happy Martha seemed to be acting more like herself again.

“What about you?” Martha asked. "Anyone you still want to meet from the 19th Century.

The Doctor furrowed his brows in thought before he said, “Vincent Van Gogh, I’ve always wanted to meet him. Just never got around to it.

“Nine hundred years and a time machine,” Martha teased. “I can see how hard it would be to find time.”

“Ha ha, very funny,” the Doctor said sarcastically.

Martha grinned and continued. “I’ve been to his museum in Amsterdam. It was pretty amazing. And I don’t even have a time machine.”

“Okay, I get it,” he said. “What about the 18th Century.”

“You met Beethoven, didn’t you?” Martha asked and the Doctor nodded. “I’d love to meet him too.”

“He was a nice chap who knew how to put on a show. But very intense,” the Doctor said. “17th century?”

Martha fell silent and drummed her fingers on her thigh in thought. “You know who would be fun to meet? Henry Avery.”

“The Pirate?” the Doctor asked.

“Yes, the pirate. In Ireland I read ‘The Republic of Pirates’ and he seemed fascinating,” she said.

“I think I’ve had my fill of pirates after Baltazar,” the Doctor said scowling.

“Come on, at least he had a sense of humour,” Martha teasingly defended despite not particularly liking him either. But it's hard to like a man who tried to kill all life on Earth by compressing the planet into a diamond. “And Baltazar was a space pirate, not a pirate of the seven seas.”

“And you need to read more interesting books," the Doctor retorted back. "I had actually planned to pick up a few books you may have liked at the last library I visited, but I got distracted."

“You’ve got a library full of books, I’m sure there is something in there you could recommend,” Martha said as she saw the distant look he got, knowing he had gone there with Donna. “Actually what better time than the present for you to show me.”

"Why don't you go on ahead and I'll catch up to you in a minute, after I've put this all away," the Doctor said.

Martha only paused for a moment before standing up and walking out the console room. She had been to the Tardis library a few times before and knew roughly where it was located. So she weaved her way through the Tardis until she found the door she wanted.

As she walked in, it felt like stepping into the universe’s largest library and she could hardly imagine another place which rivaled it. She was always struck by how extraordinary it was. Book shelf after book shelf, fanning out further than she could see. It was immense. Larger than she remembered, and making her wonder if it grew as books were added.

But as she looked out at the vast space, seeing what appeared to be millions of books stacked on overflowing shelves, she did not know where to start. She had always come with the Doctor on previous occasions.

She walked past a few shelves before finally stopping in front of an aisle. She walked down it, reading the varied title headings which jumped from one topic to another at random without any commonality.

Seeing a large book on astrology, she pulled it out and began flipping through the pages. It was not really what she was after but she still paused to look at the stunning page-length pictures of constellations held within. Martha flipped through the pages, seeing starry skies littered with dozens of brightly coloured stars, to other equally striking pictures of stars clustered so tightly together she could barely distinguish them apart.

“What are you reading?”

Martha turned to see the Doctor standing behind her.

“It’s a book on astrology,” Martha answered as she closed the book and placed it back on the shelf. “Actually, I was looking for something a little more exciting. Something with adventure.”

“Then you’re not in the right place,” the Doctor stated.

He led Martha across the library to a shelf on the other side of the room. The Doctor paused for a moment thinking, before pulling out a book and handing it to her.

“This should be exciting enough,” he said before walking down a few paces to grab one for himself.

Martha looked at the name of the author and recognized it.

“Neil Gaiman? You’ve got a library full of books from across the universe and you give me something from Earth!? And from my time too. I was hoping for something… a little different,” Martha said.

"Don’t judge a book by its cover,” the Doctor said but Martha still frowned in displeasure.

“You know, it isn’t from your time,” the Doctor defended, “it’s from your future. Just try it out and then if you don’t like it, we can exchange books. But I actually enjoyed it.”

“Fine,” Martha relented despite still pouting.

They walked to a sitting area hidden amongst the bookshelves which had a number of comfortable couches and chairs of various sizes. The Doctor choose a sofa which could fit them both comfortably but Martha choose a different couch piled with cushions. The Doctor raised an eyebrow at this, but said nothing.

They both settled down to read but as soon as Martha rested back comfortably, she found herself getting sleepy. She looked at the Doctor who seemed already immersed in his book, but unable to concentrate herself asked, “Have you read most of the books in here?”

“Yes, most of them,” the Doctor answered vaguely flipping over a page.

“You know, it would be helpful if you actually labelled things in this place. How does anybody find anything in here?”

“It has been on my to do list for a while now,” the Doctor admitted looking up at her. “I just haven’t found the time to do it.”

"Yes of course," Martha said grinning, "a man with a time machine couldn't possibly have any time to do anything."

“Well I can't read if I am organizing,” the Doctor defended.

“Fair point,” Martha conceded smiling.

Martha fell silent again and tried to focus on reading, but she found it hard to concentrate when it felt like someone was taking a sledgehammer to the inside of her head. She found herself reading down through a paragraph but then realizing she had not absorbed a thing and having to back track. Annoyed, she shifted in her chair and pulled her legs up.

The Doctor noticed her restlessness and asked, “You can't tell me you're already bored, you've barely started the book.”

"I’m not bored, just trying to get comfortable," Martha said.

"Wouldn't you be more comfortable in your bed?" he asked still thinking she looked tired.

"I'll go a little later," Martha answered not feeling like being alone.

But after a few more minutes, Martha gave up on reading as her eyes felt heavy and began dropping closed after every few words. Unable to fight it anymore, Martha allowed her eyes to close and she quickly fell asleep.

The Doctor kept silent as he watched Martha dozing off, but stood up when he saw her book was about to drop to the floor. He took the book from her lap and put it down on the nearest coffee table. He then grabbed a small blanket off one of the nearby chairs, and placed it over her. He smiled down at her, happy to see her resting before returning to his own chair and picking up the book he had been reading.

The Doctor had almost finished reading through his second book when he heard Martha groaning in her sleep. He looked over at her, curled up on the couch and assumed she was having a nightmare. He walked over to wake her up.

“Martha?" he called but received no response. When he reached for her bare shoulder to shake her awake, he felt how warm her skin was. Beginning to worry, he tried again. "Martha? Martha? Wake up?"

Martha moaned in apparent discomfort and shifted in her sleep, but did not wake up. The Doctor felt her forehead and could feel she was burning up. Needing to get her to the infirmary, the Doctor picked her up and carried her there as she began shivering in his arms.

When they reached the infirmary, the Doctor placed her on one of the beds. He found a bio scanner and scanned her body, to confirm what he was starting to suspect.

Martha had only spent a few minutes trapped in Tulok's chamber but she had swallowed down a lot of the liquid contained inside it. The liquid which when it entered a human body, it took away everything that made you look human and replaced it with something else. What Martha had not coughed out, was inside her now and wreaking havoc on her system. Her body trying to fight it as it would an infection.

The Doctor chided himself for not bringing her to the infirmary to make sure she was okay. Or forcing her to come when she looked tired and complained of a headache. He slowly ran his fingers through her hair as he apologized to her sleeping form for not taking better care of her. Promising to do better.

***

When Martha opened her eyes again, she let out a soft groan of displeasure at being awake. Her whole body felt like it was on fire and ached. But she saw the Doctor sitting beside her and holding her hand.

“You’re awake,” the Doctor said with a weary smile. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I’m dying,” Martha groaned as she realized she was no longer in the library but not caring.

The Doctor looked at her sympathetically and softly caressed her heated cheek with his other hand. “You have a fever. Can you sit for me?"

"No," Martha moaned as she closed her eyes again and not feeling like moving.

"Please, I want you to drink something which will make you feel better," the Doctor asked in a coaxing voice.

Martha wanted to ignore him but relented. “Okay.”

She dragged herself up into a sitting position.

"Drink this," the Doctor said placing a cup into her hands.

The liquid inside was clear and thinking it was water, Martha took a sip. But she immediately grimaced almost spitting out the sickly-sweet liquid.

"What is this?" she asked holding it away.

"It’s something which will help the fever come down," the Doctor answered.

"Isn't it supposed to taste bitter," Martha asked as she wrinkled her nose. "It tastes like overly sweetened tea."

Despite himself, the Doctor smiled. She was making an adorable face and he could not understand why Martha would prefer it to be bitter.

"Just drink it, and all of it," the Doctor instructed firmly.

Martha made a face but did as she was told. The Doctor checked the cup to make sure it was empty before putting it away.

“I have to give you this too," the Doctor said. He picked up what looked like an oddly shaped triangle and placed it on her shoulder.

"Oww, that hurt," Martha sad rubbing her arm. "You could have warned me."

"I did warn you," he said. "Are you hungry?"

“No, I just want to get some more sleep,” Martha answered, her eyes wanting to fall closed again.

“Okay, we better get you to bed,” the Doctor said. Without warning, he picked her up and began carrying her out of the infirmary.

“You don’t have to carrying me,” Martha weakly argued as she leaned into the Doctor's chest. “I can still walk.”

“Of course you can,” the Doctor replied as he continued walking, with her small frame easily fitting into her arms.

Martha actually did not mind as well, but she did notice something,

“This isn’t the way to my room,” she said.

“It isn’t, I’m taking you to my room,” the Doctor answered.

“What?”

Without replying, the Doctor reached a door and opened it. Inside, Martha saw a huge bed occupied the left part of the room. Unsurprisingly, the rest of the room was littered with gadgets, books and all sorts of contraptions she could hardly name. Martha also glimpsed a huge closet to the side. 

The Doctor reached his bed and placed Martha gently down.

“Doctor, I’m sick,” Martha said. “Wouldn’t it be better for me to stay in my own room until I got better?”

“You're not contagious” the Doctor said. “Plus, you need someone to look after you, and if I’m to do that its easier if you stay here.”

Martha did not feel like arguing with him, so she lay down and let the Doctor pull the covers over her. His bed felt comfortable and she could not deny she was happy he wanted to share his room with her. Even if it was only because she was sick.

When he turned about to leave, Martha called out to him. "Can you please stay? Only until I fall asleep."

The Doctor stopped. "Of course."

He lay down beside her so they were facing each other. He noticed Martha watching him, as if afraid if she closed her eyes he would disappear. So the Doctor placed his hand on her shoulder, to reassure her he was still there and he was not going anywhere. Only then did Martha close her eyes and let herself drift back to sleep.

The Doctor lay down beside her, watching over her silently. A part of him felt impatient, wanting Martha to be well again, even though he knew better than anyone it would take time. But another part of him felt guilt for being happy, happy to have Martha back in his bed again.

He wondered now why he had not told Martha the truth about their meeting again. That it had not been a coincidence as she seemed to believe. Instead it was because he had sort her out. He had needed someone by his side, someone he could trust. Someone who had been there for him in the past and who he could rely on now. Despite the number of times she had walked away from him, he knew he had to ask one last time.

He wondered if Martha had any idea how nervous he had been when they met again. Of how hard it was for him to ask her to stay. Of how he had been pacing around the console when she went to shower, wondering how to convince her to stay. But maybe the Tardis had read his mind, because she had stranded them in Ireland, giving him the time he needed. The Doctor smiled now, thinking of how the Tardis had done something similar before when he was with Donna, but it had not worked that time around.

He gently ran a hand across Martha’s face, brushing her hair away from her forehead as she slept. He leaned in close and kissed her forehead, hoping Martha knew how much he cared for her and how thankful he was to have her back in his life. Then reluctantly, he stood up and left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I left out a lot of Martha being sick because I actually started feeling bad. I felt like I've been putting her through a lot, so glossed over it a bit. But I still think the chapter turned out good.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	13. Chapter 13

When Martha next opened her eyes, the Doctor’s brown eyes were staring back her. 

“You’re awake,” he said smiling. 

The Doctor lay close beside her and she vaguely remembered him carrying her to his room and falling asleep.

“Are you feeling better?” he asked.

Martha nodded her head, not feeling like talking.

The Doctor placed a hand on her forehead and Martha closed her eyes at his touch. But she suddenly pictured the Doctor's lips pressing against her forehead. She opened her eyes to look at him, wondering at the memory but not sure if she had dreamed it up or not.

The Doctor placed his hand on her check and said, “You aren’t as warm as you were before.” He drew back his hand and continued, “You should probably eat something now you're awake.” 

“I’m tired,” Martha grumbled, trying to hide her face in the pillow beneath her.

The Doctor let out a huff of laughter as he reached out and ran a hand through her hair. "Aren't you hungry?"

"No," Martha denied. Instead, she buried her face against his chest and wrapped an arm around his waist. 

The Doctor also wrapped his arms around her and gently rubbed her back. “You will feel better after you eat something.”

“I’d rather do this,” Martha mumbled against his chest.

"You can take a shower in my bathroom,“ the Doctor offered. He leaned in close to her ear and also added. "I could help with that if you want."

Martha pulled away and stared at the Doctor, wondering if he was being serious.

The Doctor laughed. "I'm only joking."

Martha closed her eyes and tried not to think about the joke, and instead hide her face against his chest again. She snuggled closer as he began rubbing her back which was making her feel sleepy.

But seeming to notice this, the Doctor pulled away. “You’ll feel better after a warm shower and having something solid to eat."

“Can’t we just lie here?” Martha asked pouting as best she could to convince him.

"That look isn't going to change anything" the Doctor said sitting up and Martha scrunched her face in disappointment.

“You’re worse than my mother," she whined also sitting up. 

The Doctor poked her cheek playfully and retorted, “I am definitely nothing like your mother.”

Martha made a face but admitted, “Okay, I have to agree on that.”

“The bathroom is through there,” the Doctor said pointing towards a door on the opposite side of the room.

Martha nodded in acknowledgement despite still not feeling like getting up. Her headache was gone but her body felt stiff and tired. She stretched to loosen up and had to stifle a yawn. 

“I’ll head over to the kitchen and will bring you something to eat for when you’re done,” the Doctor said. 

"Thanks," Martha said as she forced herself to stand up and headed to the bathroom, while the Doctor left the room. 

When Martha entered the Doctor’s bathroom, it was much plainer than she had expected. It was a simple space with swirling blue and white tiles. It was large though, with a huge bathtub on one side and a separate glass shower on the other side. Towels had been laid out for her on the counter with a toothbrush. 

Martha choose to take a shower, enjoying the feel of the steaming hot water which loosened her stiff muscles. By the time she got out, she was feeling more relaxed and a lot better than when she woke up. She was also feeling really hungry.

After toweling herself dry, she looked around for a change of clothes. But found none. It suddenly occurred to her that a man who practically wore the same thing every day, would likely not think to set aside a change of clothes for her. 

Having no other choice, Martha wrapped a towel around her naked frame and headed for the door. She only paused momentarily, before opening it. The Doctor sat on the edge of the bed waiting for her, and looked up when he heard the door open.

His eye brows rose in surprise, as the Doctor's eyes traveled up and down her body, making her feel self-conscious. 

“Do you mind if I borrow a change of clothes?" she asked. 

“Of course,” the Doctor almost stammered as his eyes snapped away from her. He jumped off the bed and walked across the room, heading for his closet.

Feeling like she could not just wait in the doorway with nothing on but a towel, Martha stepped back into the bathroom and closed the door. She stood behind it and waited for the Doctor, wondering how they had managed to avoid this situation every other time they had stayed together, until now.

Martha heard a knock on the door and when she opened it, the Doctor held out a long shirt and a pair of pants, pointedly trying to avoid looking at her.

“They are probably going to be big on you,” he said. "I could always go to your room and grab something else."

“No these are fine, thank you,” Martha said smiling at how bashful the Doctor was acting. She took the clothes and quickly closed the door behind her. 

She removed the towel and slipped on the Doctor’s oversized shirt. As expected, it was large on her. It reached her knees and the sleeves completely engulfed her arms. But she easily fixed the sleeves by rolling them up. Next, she tried on his pants. But as soon as they were on, she knew they would not work. The pants were way too big for her and would never stay on, no matter what she tried.

She took the pants off and looked at herself in the full length mirror, wondering if she should ask the Doctor to get clothes from her bedroom. But reasoning the shirt was practically a dress on her and the Doctor was not interested in her in that way, she would be fine. She folded the Doctor's pants and her own clothes, and walked out carrying them.

The Doctor was standing this time and again seemed to be staring at her as soon as she stepped out of the bathroom. She pulled down at the hem of the shirt uncomfortably as she spoke.

“They are way too big," she explained, holding out his pants to him. 

The Doctor nodded blankly from where he was standing. “Right... yes... I forgot how... short you are.”

“You’re just way too tall,” Martha countered. 

The Doctor walked over and stretched out his hand and took the pants from her and Martha set her own clothes aside.

"I brought the food," the Doctor said rubbing the back of his head before pointing to the tray of food on the night stand.

"Thank you," Martha said again before sitting down to eat, pulling down at the shirt as she did so. While the Doctor seemed suddenly unsure of himself and remained standing.

"Do you mind sitting down? It feels awkward eating with you standing there," Martha asked.

"Right," the Doctor said despite still seeming to hesitate for a moment before sitting down at the far edge of the bed.

“How long was I asleep for?” she asked. 

“Almost two days.”

“Really?”

“You should have told me you weren’t feeling well.”

”I didn’t think it was that serious,” Martha said.

“And that was your professional diagnosis?” he asked.

“Well... maybe I did ignore how I was feeling a little bit,” Martha admitted. “I won’t do it again.”

"Good, because after you’re finished eating, I still want you to take more medication."

"Yes mom," Martha teased but more seriously continued, "Thank you for taking care of me."

"You would do the same," he answered with a smile.

"Even though, thank you," Martha said.

Once Martha was done eating, the Doctor handed her a cup and said, “Drink this.” 

Martha took a sip before almost spitting it out in disgust at how bitter the liquid was. “This tastes horrible.”

“I thought you hated it when it tasted sweet," the Doctor said. 

"Doesn't mean I like it when it tastes bitter," Martha replied. She scowled but gulped it down in one go and handed him the empty cup.

The Doctor shook his head and said “Get some rest.”

Martha crawled back into the Doctor’s bed whilst the Doctor went to sit back against the headboard and picked up a book.

Martha frowned at him but closed her eyes and tried to fall back to sleep. But began to shift around, trying to get comfortable. 

“You can’t sleep?” the Doctor asked.

Martha opened her eyes and nodded her head in affirmation.

The Doctor smiled and put down his book. He lay down beside her and opened his arms. “Come here.”

Martha entered his arms and rested her head against his chest.

"Better?" he asked.

"Yes," Martha agreed snuggling closer to him.

The Doctor smiled again and kissed the top of her head. He ran his hand up and down her back until they both fell asleep.

***

The Doctor and Martha spent a few days in the Tardis to allow Martha time to rest. But after a few uneventful days, Martha was bored.

"What were you thinking?" The Doctor asked when Martha mentioned leaving the Tardis.

"Somewhere fun and exciting," she said having no real place in mind. “Think of the place you would take someone if they won a trip as a prize."

"In my experience those don’t ever turn out well,” he said.

“You said if I think of anything for a prize, I should tell you. Well, I’m telling you. I want to go somewhere we can both have fun,” Martha said.

The Doctor remembered saying that after Martha won the race through the rain and back to the Tardis. He also remembered being the one to suggest a prize.

“Okay then. You want somewhere fun," the Doctor said thinking. "I know exactly.. wait no. Maybe... no. Yes okay, I've got it. I have just the place." 

“And where is that?’ Martha asked. 

“It's a surprise,” he said. 

“A surprise?” Martha asked knowing the Doctor's surprises were not always very pleasant.

“Yes a surprise,” the Doctor repeated. He looked her up and down and said, "I just have to get you something to wear."

After rummaging through a closet he kept close to the console, he handed Martha a dress. It was a black and golden sequin beaded dress[1], with a three-tiered fringe lining the bottom.

Martha looked at the dress with interest. "And you're not going to give me a hint?" 

"Nope, but you'll like it," he replied.

Martha took the dress feeling excited and went to change. When she returned to the console room, she found the Doctor staring at the Tardis screen pensively. She imagined whatever was on it must be serious from the look on his face.

"What are you looking at?" she asked.

“Nothing,” the Doctor said pushing it away and smiling. "You look perfect. Let's go. Allons-y."

When they stepped out of the Tardis, Martha saw they were surrounded by towering buildings and guessed they were likely in a big city. The alleyway they landed in was filthy and she was reminded of a place.

“You haven’t brought me back to New York have you?” she joked.

“How did you guess,” the Doctor asked surprised. 

“You’re kidding!”

“You must really be getting good at time traveling,” he said. “But just wait until you see where we are going.”

“I can’t wait,” Martha said less than enthused. This was the third time the Doctor had brought her to New York. The first time she got kidnapped and almost eaten by giant grabs, and the second time she had to fight pig men and Daleks. She could only guess at what the Doctor had in store for her now. 

The Doctor led her down the dirty dark alley to an equally dirty looking door. The Doctor knocked once, paused and knocked three more times rapidly before knocking once more again. He waited a few seconds before a small slot in the door opened and two eyes appeared.

“Monkey rum,” the Doctor said and the opening was abruptly shut, making Martha think that was the end of it. But then, she heard a bolt sliding and the door swung open. 

Martha followed the Doctor inside and down a flight of steps to another door. She could hear a flurry of sound behind it.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Yes," Martha nodded feeling knots of excitement again.

He opened the door and they were hit by a rich explosion of sound and sight. They walked into a dimly lit room with a haze of cigar smoke clouding the air. The room was abuzz with activity as loud upbeat jazz music emanated from a band on a big stage, as couples swirled around each other on the dance floor. A large bar area was to one side and was lined with people shouting and talking over one another, as bartenders hurried to fill orders. Around them were numerous tables filled with people laughing, chatting and ostensibly holding a drink in one hand. 

Martha looked around at the clothes and music, and smelled the distinct tinge of alcohol in the air. "Is this 1920s New York? During prohibition?"

"1929 to be exact," the Doctor answered. "What better time and place to have a little fun?"

Martha was sure he was right just by looking at the room. "How did you find this place?”

"I used to have my own bar in Chicago and someone told me about this one. Always meant to visit one day," the Doctor said.

"You had your own bar?! A speakeasy like this one?

"Yes," the Doctor said nodding. "It was a lot of fun running it, though Al Capone was not a fan[2].”

"You met Al Capone!” Martha said intrigued. “Wait, where did you get the alcohol?"

"I made it in the Tardis swimming pool and bath," he said grinning

"You never cease to amaze me."

"I hope to never stop," he said grinning. 

Martha heard the loud music suddenly die down, so turned to look at the stage and saw a woman walking onto it. The woman cued the musicians and took to the mic before a more mellow tune filled the room and she began singing.

The chatter around them slowly died down as the woman's melodic voice travelled through the room. Everyone’s attention suddenly drawn to her as the couples on the dance floor slowed their movements to match the slower pace.

"I know her," Martha said, finding herself transported to her childhood as the woman's voice echoed out of her grandmother's radio. "Yes, I know her. Its Ethel Waters!"

Martha watched entranced as the legendary jazz singer sang ‘We Dinah’[3].

"I wasn't sure you would know her," the Doctor said.

"My grandmother used to listen to her all the time," Martha explained. "But I haven't listened to her in years. Not since my gran passed away." 

Listening to the music made her feel simultaneously happy and sad. Happy for the memories it brought back but sad that the person she shared them with were gone.

"You okay?" the Doctor asked as he took her hand.

Martha nodded and smiled at him. "I'm okay."

"Let's grab a table," the Doctor said. They weaved their way through the room and found an empty table as Ethel Waters continued on to another song. "We have to do one more thing. Wait here."

The Doctor disappeared before Martha could say anything and when he reappeared, he was holding a drink in each hand. He took a seat and handed her one of the glasses.

Martha looked at the clear liquid with some doubt. “Is this safe?”

"You're going to come to a 1920s American speakeasy and you're not going to try a drink?” the Doctor asked.

"You're right," Martha said picking up her glass. "Cheers."

The Doctor picked up his own glass and repeated, "Cheers."

They clinked glasses and they both took a swing. The Doctor immediately spit out what he had drank while Martha held hers down despite the strong alcohol. Looking at the Doctor's grimacing face, Martha could not help but laugh.

“Not the surprise you expected,” Martha said grinning. 

“How is anyone still alive after drinking this stuff? It isn't half as good as my stuff,” he said pushing the glass away.

Martha laughed again. She picked up the glass and swirled it around, considered it for a second. She was pretty certain a bottle of the strong gin would probably kill her liver but she still toasted the Doctor before downing the whole glass. Once it was empty, she flipped the glass upside down over her head and placing it down, to the Doctor's utter dismay.

“A college tradition from my Korean roommate,” Martha explained but it seemed to clear up nothing for the Doctor.

"I hope you are not banking on me taking care of you, if you fall sick again," he said.

"I didn't even think about that. How do I get another one," Martha said jokingly standing up.

"Don't you dare," he said pulling her back into her chair and causing Martha to laugh again.

After another song, Ethel Waters left the stage to uproarious cheers from everyone in the room. She was replaced on stage by a set of seven people. A woman took the mic while everyone else paired off into couples. The music changed once again to a lively tempo and the couples on stage started dancing in tune to the music[ **4**]. They moved with quick successive steps, jumping in the air as their toes tapped the floor. 

"What do you say?" the Doctor said holding out a hand.

“Seriously?” Martha asked not sure if he was being serious.

“Of course, do you think I can't dance,” the Doctor asked. 

“Truthfully, no,” Martha answered. And neither could she. At least not to the 20s swing everyone was dancing.

“Then I will just have to prove you wrong,” the Doctor said with more confidence than she expected. 

They walked onto the dance floor with couples spinning around them.

“Follow my lead,” he said. 

The Doctor led her slowly at first, guiding her through simple steps but urging her to follow his lead as he matched the fast tempo which drummed from the band. Soon her movements flowed easily as she followed him through the cascade of songs. 

Martha smiled brightly as the Doctor spun her around and the sounds of heels clicking against the floor echoed around them. Their bodies moving to the rhythm of the music. His eyes fixed only on her as they both bounced and spun in poor imitation of the dancers on stage.

Until they both abandoned following the dance trend of the 1920s and danced whichever way they liked. They carefreely danced across the floor without anyone paying them any attention, as they focused only on each other. Knowing they probably looked comical, but laughing at their own absurdity and enjoying it. 

They were only forced to stop when the band finished their set. The dancers left the stage and the music slowed down again, while the Doctor and Martha collapsed in laughter against each other. 

“Okay I admit it, I was wrong,” Martha said smiling. 

“About me being unable to dance,” the Doctor said. 

“Yes, but I think they will never let us in here again. If they were police here, I’m sure we would be arrested first,” she said laughing. 

“Speak for yourself, I think everyone loved it,” the Doctor said. 

“I know I certainly did,” Martha answered smiling up at him.

“Good as I’m not done dancing yet,” the Doctor replied. 

The Doctor took one of Martha's hands and settled his other hand on the small of her back. He pulled her in closer to press against him and they began to sway to the slow music.

The Doctor’s eyes almost seemed to sparkle as he looked down at her and Martha looked up at him unable to stop smiling. She found herself unable to tear her eyes away from him, from the look in his eyes and his warm smile. She could not imagine anyone else she would rather be with in this moment. And from the look the Doctor was giving her, she hoped he felt the same way.

“I guess the third time's a charm,” Martha said.

“Third?” the Doctor asked. 

“Nothing,” Martha said shaking her head and smiling. 

They continued to dance and she felt the rest of the world seemed to fall away into a haze as they gazed into each others eyes. Forgetting the people, the music and eventually to dance. It all did not seem to matter as they came to a stop.

The Doctor gazed down at her, his eyes moving across her face. He leaned in closer and Martha held her breath as he drew closer to her. His lips inching closer to hers.

But the sudden blast of a whistle stopped him and brought them both back to the present. 

They looked around as everything around them came to a literal standstill, before people started running for the exit.

“What’s happening?" Martha asked confused.

"It’s the police," the Doctor said. He took her hand and said, "Come on."

They started running towards the closest exit as police began flooding the club and arresting anyone they could catch. The Doctor and Martha slipped out with the crowd of party goers and into the streets above. 

Things were just as chaotic above, as people shouted and screamed, as the crowd scattered in all directions. The Doctor paused for a moment to reorient himself before smiling back at her, “It’s this way.”

They ran away from the noisy street and into the alley they had parked the Tardis. 

“Hey you two! Stop!"

The Doctor and Martha came to an abrupt stop a few steps from the Tardis. They turned around and saw two police officers standing at the entrance of the alleyway. 

“Don’t move!" one of them ordered. “We have the alleyway blocked.”

Martha looked at the Doctor who stepped in front of her.

“We aren't going anywhere officers. We were just arresting ourselves in this police box," the Doctor said motioning to the Tardis behind them.

The officers looked at the Doctor confused as Martha opened the Tardis door and slipped inside. The Doctor followed in behind her and closed the door. Once inside, they paused and looked at each other before burst into laughter. 

"You're amazing," Martha said through the laughter.

"I can't argue with that," the Doctor said grinning and walking up the ramp.

Martha almost rolled her eyes even though it was still true and followed him.

The Doctor leaned against the console and asked, "So how was your prize-winning night?"

Martha also leaned against the console beside him and replied, "Are you fishing for more compliments?"

"Maybe."

Martha grinned and answered, "It was more than I expected. I absolutely loved it. Thank you.”

Martha stepped into his arms and hugged him.

“You're welcome doctor Martha Jones," the Doctor said holding her tightly.

When they parted, they again stood side by side smiling at each other. The Doctor brushed aside a stray strand of hair from her face which had gotten lose when they were running, and rested his hand on her cheek.

His eyes flickered down to her lips before meeting her eyes again. He then bent down and kissed her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be continued…
> 
> 1Link to how I envision the dress[ here ](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2714/9310/products/61617-m_1_2048x2048.jpg?v=1534524388).[return to text]  
> 2Link to information on the Seventh Doctor's novel when he ran a speakeasy[ here ](https://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/Blood_Harvest_\(novel\)).[return to text]  
> 3Link to Ethel Waters song Dinah[ here ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDsI4N2fHF4).[return to text]  
> 4 When I envision the type of music playing, I was thinking of Fergie's 'A Little Party Never Killed Nobody (All We Got)' from the The Great Gatsby soundtrack, even if it may not be historically accurate. Link to song[ here ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZgjmE6xdaw).[return to text]  
> Thank you for reading and leaving kudos. Please continue to share your thoughts and comment.


	14. Chapter 14

The Doctor leaned in close, placing both hands on Martha’s cheeks, and kissed her. His kiss was tender and soft. His lips moving slowly against hers, at first seeming unsure but becoming more confident and eager as his arms encircled her waist and pushed her back against the console.

It was easy for Martha to be drawn in by the warmth of his lips and the pull of his arms towards him. Easy to surrender herself to him as she opened her mouth and let the Doctor's tongue explore it. Letting herself be carried away by the kiss and reveling in the feel of his hands digging into her back, as if aching to dig into her body and soul. 

Her hands trailed up the Doctor's chest and wrapped around his neck, pulled him closer to her. She felt the Doctor grip her waist tightly and lift her up onto the console. She opened her legs and he slotted in between them, continued to kiss her passionately.

The Doctor leaned in closer to Martha and placed a hand onto the console to steady them both and stop them from falling backwards. But as he did so, a loud beeping began resonating from within the Tardis. He ignored it, engrossed completely in her, until it grew louder and more persistent.

“Sorry,” the Doctor said breaking the kiss and lifting his hand off whatever button he was pushing down on, which was setting off some alarm in the Tardis he had not realized existed.

The word seemed to hang between them as the alarms continued to go off around them, until Martha pushed the Doctor back further so she could get off the console. After jumping off, the console room fell into silence once again. But the silence seemed to echo louder than the high pitched clanging from only moments before.

Martha scanned the Doctor’s face who seemed unsure of himself as her own mind buzzed with joy and confusion.

“Are you angry," he asked.

"No… I just… I was just surprised," she replied still unsure what the kiss meant and afraid to hope. "Why did you kiss me?" 

The Doctor said nothing for a moment and Martha could only see hesitation and doubt in his face, which gave her all the answer she needed.

"No, never mind,” she said quickly, not wanting to hear his answer. She did not need to hear his response when she already knew what he was going to say. “It’s okay. You don't have to say anything." 

“But I-,” the Doctor began but Martha cut him off. 

“No it’s okay,” she said putting distance between them as she stepped away. She already knew the Doctor could never love her, no matter how much she loved him. She knew how this had gone the last time and that kissing someone meant nothing to him. The Doctor was probably already regretting it and thinking of some way to tell her without hurting her feelings. But she was going to make it easy for both of them. "Let's just forget it ever happened, okay? We just got caught up in the moment and made a mistake."

Martha forced herself to smile and continued, "Thank you for tonight Doctor. Good night."

She turned around and tried not to run out of the console room. 

The Doctor watched Martha’s retreating figure feeling stunned. Unsure what had just happened but knowing that Martha's reaction was not what he expected.

He did not feel like it was a mistake. He had kissed Martha because he wanted to. He had wanted to kiss her for a while now. He knew he liked her. He had always liked her, she was brilliant. But he knew it was more than that and he could not let her leave like this. He had to talk to her. 

The Doctor ran out the console room and headed for their bedroom. He pushed the door open, ready to tell her she had been wrong, but the room was empty.

"Martha?" he called out. "Martha?"

He received no response, so dashed to the en suite and knocked on the door. When he did not receive a response again, he tried the door and it swung open.

It was empty. Martha was not here. 

The Doctor looked back at the empty room wondering where she could be. The library, the kitchen, the swimming pool, the garden, the zoo, etc. There were endless possibilities.

But he also realized more important than where she was, was where she was not. If Martha had not come back to their bedroom, it was because she was avoiding him. She did not want to see him and preferred to be alone. He thought back to the look on her face as she told him to forget the kiss ever happened before she bolted out the room. 

It dawned on him that maybe, he had made a mistake. That Martha did not return his feelings. She had been engaged before, he thought, showing she had moved on. She had also refused numerous times to travel with him, and had been on the verge of walking out on him again. She had just told him the kiss was a mistake. That to her, that kiss was something she wished had never happened.

The Doctor dragged himself to the bed and sat down heavily, feeling a wave of doubt and uncertainty sweep over him. For a minute he wallowed in self-pity, wondering if this was some messed up form of cosmic justice. When Martha liked him, he had ignored her feels and it had pushed her away even though he had wanted her to stay. Now that he was falling in love with her, she wanted to stay but now she wanted to pretend they were nothing more than friends.

But the Doctor realized he had just admitted something he had been denying until now. He was falling in love with Martha. Or he was already in love with her. He was not sure.

He fell back onto the bed and placed an arm over his head, unsure what to do. He did not want to forget their kiss and was not sure he could pretend it never happened either. He just needed Martha to come back to their room so they could at least talk things through. 

***

Martha walked out the console room as her heart pounded loudly in her ears. She did not dare look back as her legs carried her automatically in the direction of their bedroom. But when she realized where she was going, she came to an abrupt stop.

How could she go back to their bedroom? The Doctor’s bedroom? And lay in his bed with him beside her and pretend as if nothing had happened. She could not do that. Not after today. Not when she could taste him on her lips.

Martha quickly backtracked and retreated in the direction of her old room. Once the door was closed behind her, she collapsed against it and thought about what had just happened. She could still feel her lips pulsing with the sensation of the Doctor’s lips pressed against her own. She touched them in wonder admitting one thing, the Doctor was a good kisser. 

She closed her eyes remembering his tongue slipping into hers. His body pressed between her legs. His arms wrapped around her waist and pulling her against his chest. She almost moaned in want thinking about it.

But Martha's eyes shot open and she shook her head, knowing this was dangerous. 

“It didn’t mean anything,” she said into her empty room. 

But her words seemed to mean little to her heart which continued to race. Even as she told herself they were friends and nothing more, her mind would not stop reliving the memory of the Doctor kissing her. 

Martha pushed off the door and walked towards her bed, removing her shoes and striping off her dress which smelled of cigar smoke. She did not feel like taking a shower, so she crawled into bed and picked up one of her pillows to place over her head, as if it would stop her from conjuring the image of the Doctor.

But it was useless. She threw the pillow aside and stared up at the ceiling. The kiss meant something to her and that was why it was dangerous. Because she was the only one who would get hurt. She liked the kiss. She liked him. And had thought about kissing te Doctor for a while now. On rare occasions, she had even imagined the Doctor's body sinking onto the bed. His hands sliding around her waist. Inching up her shirt.

She closed her eyes, imagining the feel of the Doctor’s lips upon her lips. The heat which traveled through her body as he held her against him. Imagining what would have happened if they had not stopped. If his hands had continued to slide across her body as her own hands slid down her stomach and back up to her chest to brush over her nipple.

Martha’s hand stopped as a spike of desire traveled through her. Her hand feeling the lace of her bra and warmth of skin underneath. She knew what she was doing was dangerous even as her hand brushed across her nipple again, but this was the first time she had been alone with these desires. And she had no desire to stop. Not tonight. 

Martha bit her lip, imagining the Doctor over her, his large hands roaming her body. His lips on her skin as her hand traveled up her neck, before sliding back to her chest. She cupped her breasts and squeezed them, rolling her thumb over her nipples and feeling pleasure coursing through her body. She continued to caress herself, imagining it was the Doctor’s hands doing it. His lips over her breast. Pushing away the lace as his tongue found her nipple and rolled it around before taking it into his mouth. 

Martha sighed with pleasure as she felt heat begin to pool in her stomach, wondering what it would feel like to have him inside her. Her hand traveled down her body until it dragged along the top of her underwear. She pulled her underwear off and her hand slid between her thighs to cool wetness. She moaned in pleasure as she teased herself, feeling her body aching for the Doctor. For his touch. The taste of his lips. His breath on her skin. His hands inside her. 

Martha slid a finger into herself, arching up in pleasure as her breath caught in her throat. Her finger moved inside her as she imagined it was the Doctor’s hand pleasuring her. That she could feel his breath on her skin as his lips explored her body.

She wanted the Doctor. She needed him. Even if she could not have him and this was all she could have. But she did not care. Because she loved him. 

She felt tears prick her eyes as she thought of his bright smile, his warm laugh, his soft lips. She loved him. Every part of him. Even as she knew she could never have him.

Martha gasped as she slipped another finger inside herself. Feeling her breathing become laboured as heat rose within. Her thoughts fixed on the man she loved, until she was overwhelmed by an explosion of pleasure. 

When it over, Martha lay staring at the ceiling again and listening to the sound of her heavy breathing. She could feel fresh tears falling down her face but she ignored them. She did not want to think about what they meant. Instead she closed her eyes and focused on her breathing until sleep took her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve never written any form of smut before, so I am a little nervous about this chapter. But I like how it turned out.
> 
> Thanks for reading and leaving kudos!


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve been really looking forward to writing this adventure for some time now and hope you enjoy these chapters as much as I enjoyed writing them. 
> 
> I like this song for these two. [End of the Earth](https://youtu.be/-7S7Gg9U8EY) by MARINA.

The Tardis jolted violently as it careened the Doctor and Martha to their next destination, making them both grab hold of the Tardis console to stay on their feet. Martha looked across the console separating them and the Doctor smiled at her. She automatically smiled back wondering why it was so easy for them to pretend.

The Tardis abruptly jerked to a stop, almost throwing them both off their feet again but they regained their balance and stood up straighter. 

“Ready?” the Doctor asked. 

“Always,” Martha replied.

They both rushed to the door with Martha reaching it first. She pulled open the doors, ready to step out but she came to an abrupt stop. 

"Why did you stop?" the Doctor asked after almost walking into her.

“This doesn’t look like Egypt,” Martha said as she finally stepped out and looked at her surroundings, having expected miles of desert sand and towering pyramids. Instead, she felt like she had stepped into a bedroom cut out of Tatler.

“No it doesn’t,” the Doctor agreed as he also walked out and rounded the Tardis before he called out. “You need to see this.”

Martha followed the Doctor’s voice and walked around the Tardis. Her eyes opened in amazement as she caught sight of the two stars outside a wide window. Two churning masses of glowing dust spiraled around the glimmering stars with them seeming to be on the brink of colliding. One of the spiraling galaxies was immeasurably large and dwarfed the other in size, but despite the difference in size, both were impressive in their brilliance and beauty.

Martha walked past the Doctor and stood by the window, to stare out at the colossal masses. Half-jokingly she said, “Are the pyramids space ships? Please tell me they are space ships!"

“The pyramids are not space ships, they were built on earth,” the Doctor said as he walked up to stand right beside her. "I was there."

"Of course you were," she said noticing how close he was standing next to her. "They are amazing"

“They are,” he agreed before falling silent.

Martha tried to focus her attention outside even as her eyes were drawn to the Doctor beside. All her awareness seemed aimed in his direction, with her skin tingling at their proximity which was now a rarity for them. Making a mockery of how things used to be.

She had felt like they were dancing out of tune in each other's orbit for the past few weeks. Never acknowledging the silent chasm which now existed between them. Even as they continued to travel across the universe to the Phosphorus Carousel of the Great Magellan Gestalt, helped a ship's crew stranded in an asteroid belt and saved a planet from the Red Carnivorous Maw. They were pretending like things were normal between them. That the kiss they shared had never happened.

Neither said a word even as Martha moved out of the Doctor's bedroom and returned to her own room. Their silence remained as an uneasy tension continued to grow between them. Creating an invisible barrier that seemed to keep them at arm’s length. Becoming more stifling with each passing day. 

“They are called the occulting pair[1],” the Doctor said evenly.

"Occulting?" Martha asked finally turning to look at him. 

"It’s when an object is hidden by another object. Like a solar eclipse,” the Doctor said evenly, still staring out the window into space. "But unlike a solar eclipse which would end in a matter of minutes or hours, these two galaxies have stayed like this for millennia. On occasion their dust clouds collide, but no matter how many times they collide and separate, they always stay together. They are the only pair of their kind in the universe."

“They are unique because the other exists,” Martha commented. 

“That’s one way of looking at it,” the Doctor remarked as he turned to look at her.

“What are you two doing here?” someone asked from behind them in a voice which was tinged with anger. 

They both turned around and saw a man in plain grey clothes. Neither of them heard the door opening or the man's approach until he spoke.

“You are not supposed to be in here,” he said.

“Hello and you are?” the Doctor asked giving him a bright smile.

“This is not your room,” the man repeated. 

The Doctor gave Martha a look before he asked, “Is this your room?”

The man looked at them suspiciously, so the Doctor took out his physic paper and held it out to him. “We are…,”

The man read it and immediately looked apologetic and bowed his head. “I did not know you were attending Governor General.” 

The Doctor smiled again and put his physic paper in his pocket. “What’s your name?” 

“Jacobo,” the man answered. 

“Yes, sorry Jacobo. We thought this was our room,” the Doctor said. 

"My apologies, I expected all the guests to be at the banquet," Jacobo explained. He looked around the room and his eyes landed on the blue telephone box. “Is that your gift?

“Gift?” Martha asked. 

“For the wedding,” he clarified as if it was obvious. 

“No,” the Doctor answered. “That’s our… It contains our luggage.”

Jacobo bowed again deeply. “My apologies governor. We will have it moved to your correct room.”

“In the meantime, can you show us where the banquet is being held?” Martha asked pleased at the mention of a wedding. 

But Jacobo seemed to hesitate, “Would you not like to change first?” 

“No, you can take us straight there,” the Doctor said and Martha nodded in agreement. 

Jacobo still seemed to hesitate but said, “Of course, please follow me this way.”

As they walked out, Martha took a fleeting look behind her at the mesmerizing sight of the two galaxies caught in an eternal dance of harmony and destruction before walking out the room. 

When they arrived in a large open room, Martha understood why Jacobo had suggested they change first. They were decidedly under dressed with the Doctor in his usual brown suit and her in a loose fitted blouse and khaki pants. Especially as all the women were arrayed in bright flowing gowns[2] and the men in colourful button down long coats with high collars[3]. The only men who stood out as different were the uniformed men lining the outer walls, who Martha guessed were guards.

But everyone seemed to ignore them and instead be talking excitedly or dancing as music floated across the room. Waiters glided across the room balancing one tray in each hand and Martha realized Jacobo was dressed in exactly the same attire as the waiters. She looked around for him, but saw that Jacobo had disappeared.

One of the waiters passed by them and the Doctor seemed to light up.

"Nibbles!" he said excitedly seeing small plates filled with bit size pastries. He took two plates from a passing waiter and handed one of them to Martha. He popped one into his mouth and hummed in satisfaction. "These are good. Try one." 

Martha tossed one in her mouth and it practically melted in her mouth. It tasted like an infusion of raspberries and blackberries. She took another and found it tasted like bananas and honey. 

“These are really good,” Martha agreed. She looked around the room which was buzzing with excitement. “This might not be Egypt but weddings are always a lot of fun.” 

“Or more trouble than their worth,” the Doctor contradicted.

“You can’t mean that. Weddings are amazing,” Martha said.

“I find their more hit or miss. You never know what’s going to happen and someone usually ends up dead by the end."

“Okay, that’s definitely a you thing,” Martha said.

As they spoke, the music suddenly died away and the sound of trumpets rose up as an announcement was made. 

“Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the guests of honour, Prince Killian of Huesca and Princess Bisila of Bioko.

The whole room burst into a chorus of cheers as the doors at the other end of the room opened and two tall figures appeared dressed in white and gold[ **4**]. They glided into the room as guards moved the crowd aside so the couple could reach the center of the crowd unimpeded.

As the cheers died down Prince Killian, who was a head taller than Princess Bisila and had olive skin and dark hair, spoke with a commanding and authoritative voice which silenced the crowd.

“We are both honoured to have you join us as witnesses in this historic moment. The joining of our two people!” The crowd clapped loudly again but quieted down again as he continued to speak. “The union between our families has been hard fought and long overdue. But we both look forward to working as one, as we look towards an age of unity and prosperity.”

A chorus of cheers broke out again before Princess Bisila, who also had dark hair and brown skin, spoke. 

“We graciously thank you for celebrating this union with us and look forward to the unprecedented age of peace and cooperation we will usher in. We have strived for peace for millennia and now we are honoured it will be sealed by our joyous wedding tomorrow. But today, we wish you to enjoy the festivities in anticipation of more joy to come tomorrow."

Cheers of joy burst out again with everyone clapping in happiness as the two stood smiling at the crowd. The Doctor and Martha could not help but join in the chorus of joy which filled the room. 

Once the cheering ended, the couple began walking the room and greeting the guests accompanied by three of the uniformed men. Martha leaned in closer to the Doctor and asked, “Have you heard of them before?” 

The Doctor pursed his lips in thought. “I feel like I should have. I know I have heard the name Bisila before, but it was a place not a person.”

The music started back up again and the celebratory atmosphere picked up where it had left off. But everyone chatted in more hushed tones as they waited hopefully for their turn to speak to the prince and princess. Martha turned to say something to the Doctor but he spoke first. 

“I’m going to get more of these,” he said motioning to his plate which was empty before walking off to the other side of the room where there were tables laid out buffet style as waiters continued to weave through the crowd.

Martha did not say anything even though she knew any of the numerous waiters could have helped the Doctor. Instead, she stayed behind watching him make his way through the crowd before she turned back to look at the couple move across the room. She watched them greet a couple who bowed low before speaking. They barely spoke for a minute before the couple moved on to the next person.

After a while of contenting herself with listening to the music and trying more of the delicious food the waiters ferried around the room, she peaked over at the Doctor. He was excitedly engaged in a conversation with two others close to the buffet table, laughing freely at something one of them had said. She felt a prick of jealousy even though she knew it was stupid, but it was hard to ignore the change between them. That the Doctor preferred to be across the room talking to strangers than being next to her. She missed the easy familiarity they once shared. That with each passing day he seemed to want to be anywhere but near her.

Martha turned away from the Doctor and directed her attention back to the couple who were headed her way. She knew she had to move to avoid an awkward conversation of who she was. But as they got closer, she saw someone approach the prince and call him away, leaving Princess Bisila to continue on with two of the guards.

As Martha was about to sneak across the room, her attention was drawn a few feet away as some sort of commotion in the crowd started. Before she could make out what was happening, one of the waiters came out of the crowd and raised a gun. Without hesitating, the man shot the first man beside Bisila who blocked his aim to her. As the shot rang out, the whole room burst into a frenzy of panic and cries of fear.

Everything descended into chaos as people ran in every direction. Martha also started moving, but in the opposite direction of the people around her. 

The second shot took out the other man beside Bisila who stepped in front of her as he tried to reach for his gun, but he was too slow. Instead, he was only able to save Bisila for a few more seconds before the gun was pointed at her. 

Martha knew she was closer to Bisila and would never reach the attacker in time, so she did the only thing she could. She ran and stood in front of Princess Bisila, shielding her from the attacker.

She knew they were both helpless to whoever this man was, but Martha also knew she could not stand by and watch someone else get killed. 

“Please stop, why are you doing this?” Martha asked frantically, hoping to buy time as she saw guards pushing through the chaotic and screaming crowd to get to them. 

“If you don’t move, I will kill you,” the man snarled in anger as he pointed his gun at Martha’s chest. 

Martha held up her hands, showing she had no weapons or any means to defend herself. But she also knew every second she held off this man, gave them time for someone who could help to reach them. 

“Please stop, you don’t have to do this,” she said. “Let’s please talk about this.”

The man did not say anything more as his finger pulled the trigger.

Martha felt her heart stop as he did so, waiting helplessly for the sound of the shot to reverberate through the room before feeling the pain of the shot as it passed through her body. 

But as the seconds ticked by, nothing happened. 

Instead, Martha and her attacker both looked at each other in apparent shock. Martha's eyes shifted behind him and she locked eyes with the Doctor. Her eyes move to his hand and she saw his sonic pointed at the attacker.

Everything which happened next was just a blur of noise and movements. The guards descended on the attacker who did not get another opportunity to shoot, grabbing his hands and throwing him roughly onto the ground as others piled on him. While other guards formed a protective wall around her and Bisila.

In the apparent chaos, Martha found herself ferried away out of the room with the princess. They hurried them across the ship and deposited them in the room the Doctor and her had initially arrived in. But as Martha looked around, she could see that the Tardis was now gone.

“You will be safe here, your Highness,” one of the guards said before looking at Martha in sudden surprise, as if she was not meant to be there. 

“It’s okay, we can stay together General Gregorio,” Princess Bisila instructed. 

He nodded and walked out with the doors closing behind him and leaving the two women alone. 

Bisila looked at Martha and she inclined her head. “Thank you for saving my life.” 

“I didn’t do anything,” Martha said, knowing she was just as defenseless as Bisila had been. 

“You risked your life to save me, that is more than a lot of people could say in that room,” she said almost bitterly. 

Martha did not know what to say to that statement as she was right. So she said the only think she could, “You’re welcome.” But she had another obvious question. “Do you know why the man was trying to kill you?”

Bisila examined Martha’s features and said, “What is your name? I don’t recognize you from any of the prominent families.”

“My name’s Martha, Martha Jones” she said.

“Are you from Huesca?”

“No,” Martha said shaking her head.

“From Bioko?”

“No, I’m from Earth.” 

Bisila frowned. “I’ve never heard of it.”

“Few people have,” Martha remarked. 

“But I guess I understand now why you wouldn’t know,” she said. 

“What do you mean?” Martha asked. 

Princess Bisila let out a low sigh and turned away to look out at the two galaxies oscillating beside one another. “When you look at that, what do you see?”

Martha looked out the window at the Occulting Pair and answered. “I see beauty.” 

“I see a message and the reason this location was chosen for our wedding. Just like these two galaxies which over the millennia have collided and caused untold destruction to each other, my people and Killian’s people of Huesca have fought endlessly for eons over everything from trading routes to mining colonies and boundaries. But more than that, our people have despised and hated each other for as long as we have kept histories. But the never-ending wars have taken its toll on both our people. We are both now weak and our people have suffered, but we also know my people are the weaker side and in time we will be swallowed up and destroyed if we do not seek peace. But Killian's people also know they will suffer untold loss before they can claim victory. That is why this marriage was arranged by our governments, to ensure the survival of both our people.”

“This is an arranged marriage?” Martha asked. 

“Yes, peace treaties alone in the past have never lasted long.”

Martha tried to be positive as spoke. “So your marriage should be a good thing. You are bringing an end to the war and peace for your people.”

“Not everyone sees it as a good thing. I know the people of Huesca would like nothing more than for my people to be finally wiped out and for them to take control of everything we own, even if it leads to the collapse of their own nation. And a lot of my own people see this marriage as a humiliating surrender their ancestors would never have allowed. They would rather die than live with the knowledge that I will always be inferior to Killian, never his equal. The smaller galaxy still consumed by the larger,” Bisila replied folding her hands.

“But Killian agreeing to this marriage must mean he wants peace as much as you do. You can show everyone the good it will bring,” Martha said positively. 

“I wish more people shared your optimism,” Bisila said. “But even our parents have little hope this will work. That’s why they are not attending our wedding, and with good reason as you’ve seen.”

"If it's so hopeless, then why are you getting married?" Martha asked.

Bisila unfolded her arms and turned back around to face Martha, "Because I have to try. If I can stop the never-ending war and end the suffering my people have endured for millennia, then don’t you think I have the responsibility to do everything I can to make this work." 

Martha looked with admiration at Bisila for what she was doing. 

The doors opened behind them and Killian walked into the room with a look of relief on his face. “Bisila! Thank the heavens you are okay.”

Bisila turned to him as he walked up to her and he looked her over. “You haven’t been hurt, have you?” 

“No, thank you for your concern,” Bisila replied stoically.

As she spoke, Killian seemed to catch himself as his whole demeanour changed from one of worry and relief to calm indifference. “I’m happy to see that.”

“Of course, the alliance is still safe,” she said calmly.

“Of course,” he agreed with an edge to his voice. 

Martha watched the whole exchange with curiosity, but remained silent. 

General Gregorio walked in after him with two men trailing him. Killian turned around and spoke sternly to him. “How did this happen. How did that man get on board this ship?” 

“We are working on finding that out, your highness,” the general said.

"And have you questioned Councilor Nelson on leading me away just before Princess Bisila was attacked?”

One of the men standing beside General Gregorio spoke. "I'm sorry to inform you of this your highness, but Councilor Nelson is dead.”

"What! How?"

"In the confusion he disappeared and we found his body in his quarters. We are still investigating what happened.”

"So what can you tell me?" Killian asked.

"That we've rounded up all the servants on the ship and are questioning them and reviewing their backgrounds."

“Restrict everyone to their chambers and triple the guard outside these quarters. Also have the ship searched again. Our wedding is tomorrow and we cannot have any more mishaps.” 

Martha thought that was a funny way to refer to your fiancé almost being assassinated but their interactions seemed to be a contradiction in themselves. 

When Killian turned to Martha next, he was smiling which seemed genuine at least. “Thank you for saving my bride, I am eternally in your debt.”

“I was only doing what was right,” Martha replied. 

“I will have Commander Ose take you to your quarters. If you need anything at all, it will be at your disposal,” he said. 

“Thank you,” Martha said again before being led out the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I watched the movie Palm Trees in the Snow and got inspired to write this adventure.
> 
> Fashion wise, if anyone is wondering, the women are wearing the typical attire for women of Bisila’s people and the men are wearing what's common for Killian’s people.
> 
> Thanks for reading and sorry for taking so long to update.
> 
> 1Link to picture of the Occulting Pair[ here. ](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2MASX_J00482185-2507365_by_HST.jpg)[return to text]
> 
> 2The dress styles the woman are wearing[ here ](http://krikorjabotian.com/capsule-18/).[return to text]
> 
> 3Men are wearing traditional Indian wedding attire[ here ](https://www.manyavar.com/men/sherwani).[return to text]
> 
> 4Killian's attire[ here ](https://qpho2.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-7a532d5fdd261104a3a82b2e3c508e4a)Bisila’s pre-wedding dress: front[ here](http://www.munaluchibridal.com/krikor-jabotian-fallwinter-2013-bridal-collection/486931_542829932413393_1613822734_n/) and back[ here ](http://www.munaluchibridal.com/krikor-jabotian-fallwinter-2013-bridal-collection/76109_542826172413769_82826427_n/)[return to text]  
> 


	16. Chapter 16

Martha left Princess Bisila's bedroom and was led away to an empty bedroom across the ship. 

"You should stay here until the wedding tomorrow," Commander Ose said before turning to leave with the rest of the guards who had accompanied them.

“Wait!" Martha shouted, stopping him. "I need to find the Doctor." 

“The Doctor?” he asked confused.

“The man I was with.”

Ose still looked at her blankly but said, “We will look for him and let him know you're here."

"You don’t know what he looks like. It would be easier if I just come with you."

“You heard what Prince Killian said. No one is to leave their rooms. That includes you," he said. Before Martha could say anything else, he added. "I’ll make sure to find him.”

With that Commander Ose left, leaving Martha alone. Having no intention of patiently waiting around, she walked over to the door and listened for any sounds of footsteps or talking. As soon as she heard nothing, she tried the door.

Martha pushed the button which should have opened the door, but nothing happened. She pressed it again repeatedly but with no success. She tried to force it open but after all her efforts failed, she knew it was hopeless. She was stuck. She kicked the door in frustration, having no idea how to contact the Doctor or get out. She only hoped Commander Ose kept his word and found the Doctor or with some luck, the Doctor found her himself.

Feeling restless and unable to sit down, she began pacing around the room. She wanted to be outside helping. Not stuck worrying about Bisila’s safety and the safety of everyone on the ship. Or wondering where the Doctor was and what he was doing while she was trapped.

But before she could figure out a solution, the door opened. Her face instantly lit up as she saw the Doctor standing on the other side of the doorway. "Doctor! I'm so happy to see you."

Without saying a word, the Doctor crossed the room and pulled her into a hug. Surprising her.

"Do you have any idea how worried I've been?" he said as he pulled her in tighter, as if reassuring himself that she was okay.

She hugged him back and said, “I’m okay, you didn’t have to worry."

“I don’t know what I would have done if I’d lost you.”

Martha knew there was a very real possibility she could have died today, but thanks to the Doctor she was okay. “Thank you for saving me." 

He buried his face in the crock of her neck and mumbled, "Is it useless telling you to never do that again."

Despite herself, Martha smiled as she asked, "Would you listen if I asked you the same thing?"

The Doctor remained silent for a moment before pulling away from her as Martha also let go reluctantly. He held her by her shoulders at arm's length and asked, "What am I going to do with you?”

“Buy me a drink and maybe you’ll find out,” she joked which made the Doctor smile. “What have you been doing since then?”

“Nosing around the ship,” he answered, letting his hands run down her arms to hold her hands. “And I found something interesting. An unusual energy signature coming from the ship's engines."

"Do you know what's causing it?"

"That's what we are going to find out?"

Martha's smile broadened. “Well, lead the way."

The Doctor released her hands and headed for the door but when he tried to open it, it would not open again.

"I don't think the doors open from the inside anymore,” Martha said. “Prince Killian told the guards to keep everyone in their rooms." 

"Good thing I have this," the Doctor said taking out his sonic screwdriver. 

One buzz from his sonic and the door slide open. After taking a look around to make sure there was no one outside, the Doctor took Martha's hand and led her out the room. As they moved through the ship dodging a few workers and guards, Martha told the Doctor everything Bisila had told her about the conflict between her people and Killian's people. Until they reached a door with bright red lettering written "RESTRICTED".

“It's through here,” the Doctor said.

He released Martha's hand and again used his sonic to open the door which led to a wide corridor and another door with more warning signs to keep out. They walked right past them and into the engine room which was a large room filled with the steady hum of motors. Immense piping ran from the motors along the ground and upwards through the ceiling. Flashing power-boards lined the walls as a row of large towers holding spiralling light filled up a section of the room, and a raised platform with stairs stood in the corner behind them. 

"What are we looking for?" Martha asked.

“Not sure yet,” the Doctor answered.

He used his sonic to scan the room and it immediately began to buzz louder as he pointed it at the row of towers. He approached them and scanned two of the towers before stopping at the third one. He tried prying open the panels around the tower until one of them popped out relatively easily. He took out his glasses and put them on before looking at what was inside.

Martha came to stand beside him and also peered inside. She saw a large sphere with wires sticking out of it and connecting it to the sides of the tower. More ominously, it had a screen with numbers counting down.

”Is that what I think it is?” she asked.

“Yep, it’s a bomb,” the Doctor confirmed with mild curiosity instead of trepidation as he used his sonic to scan it. “Very complicated piece of work. It’s quite cleverly made actually.”

Martha frowned, not sure if he was joking and asked, “You can disarm it right?”

“Of course,” he said getting to work as Martha shook her head in disbelief at the Doctor's lax attitude. "But I'll have to make it seem like I haven't disarmed it."

"Why?" Martha asked.

The Doctor stopped what he was doing and looked at her. "If the person or people who put this here find out we have disarmed it, they will look for another way to destroy the ship. But if we keep quiet about disarming it-"

"They won't know we're on to them," Martha finished.

"Exactly! And from what you said earlier, we don't know who to trust with this information and probably neither do Killian and Bisila." 

"But what if there are more bombs around the ship? Shouldn’t we warn someone?" Martha asked.

"They placed it here on purpose," the Doctor said motioning to the tower. "This tower is connected to the fuel core and if it exploded, it would destroy the entire ship. They only need the one bomb."

Martha still felt unsure about the Doctor's plan to hid the information, but she also knew it was not the first time and would not be the last time she did not like one of his plans. So trusting him, she said, “Okay.”

“Good,” the Doctor said as he got back to work and finished disarming the bomb even as the timer continued to count down. Once he was done they were ready to sneak back to their room when Martha stopped him.

“Wait Doctor, do you hear that?” Martha asked as she thought she heard scattered voices and the echoing of footsteps approaching.

The Doctor stopped and listened hearing what she did. “We can’t let anyone find us here."

The Doctor scanned the room before taking Martha's hand and pulling her behind the raised platform in the corner as they heard the door open. He pushed Martha in first and squeezed in behind her, pressing up against her so they both remained just out of view.

“How can I trust anything you have to say after today,” one of the voices said.

“How am I to blame for anything that happened today,” the other voice replied.

The Doctor and Martha looked at each other in surprise recognizing the voice.

“Then who should I blame?”

"How could I have known that those two would be in Bisila’s room? And you had no idea the Governor General was coming either?" Jacobo said.

"So what if I didn't know," the other voice said. "You should have planted the bomb in her room regardless.”

“By the time I returned she was back in her room. How was I going to do that with her and her entourage watching?”

"Do you know how much danger I put myself in getting that bomb on board? Getting it to her room was supposed to be the easy part. Now thanks to you, probably none of us are getting off this ship alive."

"You still have access to her room, you can kill her at anytime," Jacobo said.

"Killian has tripled her guard, I'll never get close to her now."

"But did we have to put the bomb here," Jacobo asked. "Isn't there another way?"

“You know what you signed up for when you agreed to this, we all did.”

“But-“

"But nothing. The plan was to stop the wedding, but now the wedding is our best chance. But if we fail at there, Pao guarantees no one is making it off this ship alive and the humiliating peace treaty will never happen."

"Damn Killian and anyone else who supported it which brought us to this," Jacobo cursed.

"Just make sure to stick to the plan tomorrow."

"You don't fail at the wedding," Jacobo sneered.

"You have some nerve saying that to me after today," the other man said in anger.

The two continued to argue as Martha thought she recognized the other voice as well, but she was unable to place it. She glanced up at the Doctor wondering if the voice was familiar to him as well, but apart from the initial recognition of Jacobo, it did not seem like it.

He had his head tilted with his glasses framing his face, listening intently as the two men continued to argue. Martha's eyes left his face and she took in how tall he was, the broadness of his chest and the feel of his synchronized heart beats against her chest. Things about him she had taken for granted before, like the closeness they had shared until it was gone.

Seeming to notice her attention on him, the Doctor looked down at her with questioning eyes. Martha opened her mouth to speak but his hand came up to block her mouth as he shook his head. They were too close to the two men and there was a chance they would be over heard. Martha nodded her head in understanding as his hand dropped, brushing against her lips. She remained silent as the Doctor’s attention shifted away from the conversation happening beside them to her. Under his steady gaze, Martha felt the weight of his presence and the lack of space between them, causing her to shift uncomfortably. 

She barely noticed as the two men stopped arguing and confirmed everything was in place for the following day. Instead, she focused on trying to look anywhere but at the Doctor even as her eyes kept glancing up at him. She heard the sound of something being pulled open and then closed again a moment later, making her assume they were checking the bomb was still in place. She assumed they were satisfied with what they saw as she heard retreating footsteps and the door opening and closing, leaving the Doctor and Martha alone again.

She fully expected the Doctor to step back but instead he remained in place with an unreadable expression in his eyes.

“Maybe we should-,” Martha began to say but the words died in her throat as she locked eyes with the Doctor.

His brown eyes darkened as they travelled across her face to stop at her lips before meeting her eyes again, asking an unspoken question. Her heart began to beat faster as the Doctor placed a hand on her cheek and his fingers ran across her jaw to rest under her chin.

“Tell me if you want me to stop,” he whispered as he tilted her head up. He lowered his head, drawing closer to her as he watched her for any sign of refusal until his lips brushed her lips.

It was only the briefest of touches but Martha’s heart leapt in excitement even as the Doctor drew away. He waited for her to react and she did. Martha reached up to remove the Doctor's glasses from his face and slide them into his pocket before looking back up at him in anticipation.

A small smile of relief formed on the Doctor's lips as he took Martha's face in his hands and kissed her again. His lips pressing hungrily as he pushed her against the wall. Martha matched his want and urgency with her own, letting herself be consumed by the intensity of the moment. Pressing into each other with the longing and desire they had been concealing with distance and silence for the last few weeks.

When they eventually drew apart, with panting breaths and racing hearts, the Doctor looked at Martha with a million thoughts racing through his head.

Martha also looked up at the Doctor, seeing questions he was struggling to voice in his eyes. But after weeks of pretending and hiding how she felt, she had her answer.

Martha gripped the Doctor's lapels and went onto her toes to kiss him again. But her kiss had lost the urgency and hunger from only moments before. Instead, the kiss was soft and filled with tenderness and affection.

The Doctor returned Martha's kiss with the same tenderness, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her closer to him. Feeling possessive, her hands slipped into his jacket to feel the broad expanse of his chest and the frantic beating of his hearts which matched her own. Her hands roamed across his chest, loving the feel of his muscles under her touch as she opened her mouth to the Doctor so he could claim it again. 

She felt the heat of his tongue and instantly wanted more of him, sliding her hands up the Doctor’s chest and encircled his neck to pull him closer to her. She curved her body into his, loving the feel of his body against her as the Doctor’s hands traced the curve of her body to rest at her thighs. His hands dug into her skin before gripping her thighs and hoisting her up.

The Doctor pressed her against the wall as Martha wrapped her legs around his waist. He held her level as they continued to explore each other's mouths. When their lips broke, the Doctor began trailing kisses down her jawline to the soft skin of her neck. He peppered kisses down her neck, at first gentle, until his teeth began grazing her skin. Martha moaned in pleasure as he began biting and sucking at her skin, as his hand traveled up her body and cupped her breast through the fabric of her blouse.

Martha's own hands ran through his hair and tugged at the nape of his neck as the buttons of her blouse came undone and she felt the hot touch of his skin push away her blouse and the strap of her bra. Her desire and want for him continued to grow as he caressed her breast and she heard him groan in pleasure as he continued to suck at her skin.

She tilted her head back and moaned in pleasure again even as she thought she heard a noise. But that noise was pushed out of her mind when the Doctor found her lips again and grinded into her. Martha's thighs tightened around him as he continued rocking against her, and they moaned into each other's mouths in pleasure.

"What are you doing here?" a voice said in a mixture of shock and embarrassment.

The Doctor and Martha froze.

Martha jumped down the Doctor as he straightened his clothes before turning to face the young technician who was staring at them in shock.

“Hello,” the Doctor said casually as if he had not just been caught in a compromising position as he shielded Martha behind him.

"I should call security," the technician said stunned.

"No please don't do that," the Doctor said.

"You should not be in here. Its a restricted area," the man said.

"Yes but... we were just looking for… some privacy," the Doctor said.

Martha could feel her cheeks burning with embarrassment as she clumsily redid her blouse's buttons.

"We are really sorry," Martha also mumbled still hiding behind the Doctor as she tucked in her shirt which had come out completely. She felt furious at herself for their carelessness and mortified she had been caught like some horny teenager, when this had not happened to her even as a teenager.

"We have rooms for that," the man said scandalized.

Martha's cheeks burned even more fiercely at the intonation, feeling about ready to die.

"Yes, we are so sorry," the Doctor said sounding more composed than Martha felt. "We came here because we didn't want to be found. We promise we won't let it happen again."

The employee still looked unsure, but said, "I'll lead you back to the guest's quarters. You can't be here."

"Of course," the Doctor said as Martha continued to hide behind him in embarrassment, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible.

The technician lead them across the ship and back towards their room when they came across Commander Ose talking to Jacobo. The Doctor and Martha shared a worried look as they approached. 

“Doctor! Martha?! How did you get out of your room?” Commander Ose asked them. “We have been looking for you.”

“Doctor?” Jacobo asked looking confused. “You mean the Governor General.”

“We wanted to have a look around,” the Doctor cut in as he pushed his hands into his pockets.

Martha glanced at the technician who had snorted in disbelief and was giving them both an incredulous look but Martha quickly looked away.

"Simon do you have something to say?" Ose asked the technician beside them.

"Nothing at all father,” he answered, surprising both the Doctor and Martha.

“I told you not to call me that when we are working,” Commander Ose said. “What are you doing with these two?”

Martha held her breath before he spoke.

“I was simply helping our honourable Governor and his companion who were lost and wandering the corridors. I thought it was my duty to show them the way back to their rooms," Simon answered but sounding patronizing. 

The Doctor and Martha glanced at each other again, unsure why Simon had not ratted them out but the Doctor said, “Yes, your son was very gracious to help us find our way back to our room."

Ose looked at his son quizzically and was about to say something but Jacobo spoke first.

“Actually Governor, your room is not in this section.”

“My room?” the Doctor asked in surprise as his hands slipped out of his pockets.

“Yes, it’s in the other wing with your 'luggage'. We would never expect you to share a room with someone,” Jacobo replied.

“Jacobo why don’t you show the Doctor, I mean the Governor,” Ose corrected himself, “to his room while I take Martha.”

“There was no need for that,” the Doctor said glancing at Martha as she suddenly avoided his look.

“Sir?” Ose asked confused.

“We are used to sharing a room,” the Doctor elaborated.

“Thank you for your consideration,” Martha said cutting in. “Of course you can take us to our seperate rooms.”

The Doctor’s head snapped around to look at her as Martha heard another snort of laughter from Simon, who tried to cover it with a cough.

General Ose glanced at his son before looking at Martha and the Doctor unsure what to do next. But Martha, ready to be anywhere but where she was, said, “It’s okay Commander Ose, I’ll just go to my room for the night. Good night Doctor.”

Martha faked a smile before walked past everyone and down the corridor, forcing Ose to follow her. Martha could feel the Doctor’s eyes burrowing into the back of her head but she ignored it. She knew they needed to talk and she was being cowardly, but she really could not do it right now. She needed time alone to think about what had just happened.

When she was back in her room alone, she found something waiting for her. A dress hung in the open closet. Martha walked up to it and marveled at it’s beauty. It was a high collared red dress which was knee length in the front and had a long train in the back. The train reached the ground and had floral gold embellishments on both the front and back[1].

A note was stuck to it, reading: ‘A small gift to say thank you’. It was signed Princess Bisila.

Martha took the note and went to fall back on her bed, happy to be alone for once. Her day had been so unexpected at every turn and now she felt both exhausted and exhilarated. Exhausted by all the bad that had happened and for what lay ahead tomorrow. But exhilarated at what the future had in store for her and the Doctor, even as doubts began to swirl in her head making her question everything. But even as she second guessed hersself, she felt more sure than ever that everything would be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for commenting and leaving kudos.
> 
> 1Martha’s dress for the wedding: [front](http://krikorjabotian.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/SS14-02-01-W.jpg) and [back](http://krikorjabotian.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/SS14-02-03-W.jpg)[return to text]  
> 


	17. Chapter 17

The following morning, Martha was woken up by loud knocking at her door. When she answered, she was greeted by a woman in plain grey clothing who told her she was there to help her get dressed.

Despite trying to assure the woman she had the wrong room and then repeatedly declining the help, the woman refused to leave. So Martha found herself sitting in a chair getting her hair and makeup done. But even though it turned out to be a long and tedious process, Martha was happy for the frivolous distraction. Because it helped distract her from how anxious she was becoming as the morning inched along.

For starters, she was anxious about what she would say when she met the Doctor again, especially after basically running away from him the previous day. She knew she needed to explain herself. But even more than that, she was anxious about what the Doctor would say in return. Because even after everything that had happened between them, she still had doubts.

She knew her own feelings. She was in love with the Doctor. But she doubted his feelings for her. If she went by previous experience, things did not look very promising. The first time they kissed, which was also the day they met, he told her the kiss meant nothing and had proceeded to ignore her feelings for him for the rest of their time together. The next time they kissed after New York, he had distanced himself from her and at times she had felt completely ignored. So if she reviewed their history, it did not reassure her about how things would turn out now.

She tried to imagine different scenarios of how things would go. She could act like it never happened and see what the Doctor did. But she guessed he would probably act like it never happened too. Or she could acknowledge what happened and play it down like it was no big deal, like she had casual hook-ups all the time. But that was a lie and would get her no answers. So she thought of what would happen if she just confessed her feelings for him. Who knows, he might tell her he was madly in love with her too.

But Martha almost laughed at the last thought, thinking it was ridiculous. She would know if the Doctor returned her feelings. She told herself to think more logically. But before she could decide on what to do, it was time for her to get dressed and head to the wedding.

Wearing the red dress[1] she had been gifted the previous day, Martha stepped out of her room. She joined the procession of guests as they headed to the banquet hall for the ceremony, feeling more unsure of what to do with every step. As she approached the banquet hall, she came to an abrupt stop when she saw the tall slim figure of the Doctor standing outside the double doors.

The other guests continued to stream past her as she looked at him. He was not looking in her direction or dressed in his usual brown suit but Martha could still easily spot the Doctor with his wild hair in the large crowd. He was dressed in a navy-blue button-down tunic with dark pants like the rest of the male guests. The arms and collar were lined with golden stripes and the front and back were covered in golden patterns which matched her dress[2].

When the Doctor turned around and saw her, all coherent thought seemed to leave her mind. She did not know what to do. But seeing him smile at her reassured her. So she tentatively stepped forward as the Doctor walked towards her and they met.

"You look beautiful," he said.

"Thank you, so do you... I mean... I like the new outfit."

The Doctor grinned in amusement. "I found it in my room yesterday."

"It looks good on you," she repeated before realizing she had basically already said that.

She fell silent still unsure what to say or where to start, but before things could become awkward, the Doctor offered out his arm.

"We should head inside," he said. "We can talk later."

Martha nodded in agreement and finally smiled. "Okay."

She felt a small sense of relief but also some disappointment, as she slipped her hand through his arm and they headed inside. As nervous and unsure as she felt, she also wanted answers. But she had to admit it would be hard to talk about anything meaningful surrounded by a crowd of strangers. Also, there were more important things to do, such as making sure they and both the bride and groom survived this wedding.

They entered the large banquet hall from yesterday, which now had a long white aisle lined with white flowers down the middle. The white aisle ended at stairs leading up a stage with flower stands draped with ribbons ringed around it. The room was beautifully decorated in white flowers and crystals, but no one was in a joyous mood.

The tension in the room was palpable with everyone’s eyes darting around nervously, taking in the heavily armed guards. There was mininal chatter and what little talk there was, was subdued and strained. Almost everyone headed immediately to their seats which lined either side of the aisle.

"Such a wonderful atmosphere for a wedding," Martha joked.

"Yes, very cheerful," the Doctor agreed ironically.

The Doctor lead them along with the other guests to find a seat, but they were stopped and ushered to the front of the room. They were seated in the front row, right beside the stage the bride and groom would be exchanging their vows. Martha assumed it was again another show of gratitude for saving Bisila’s life the previous day.

The final guests seated themselves down and Martha spotted Jacobo entering the room. But he was not dressed as a server as before, instead he was dressed like a regular guest and appeared to be clutching something in his hands.

"Jacobo is here," Martha warned the Doctor in case he had missed him.

"I see him," he answered.

Once everyone was seated, the officiate took his place at the front of the room. They heard the first strings of music begin to play as Killian walked through the double doors. He strode down the aisle with a pair of guards trailing a short distance behind him. As Killian walked past, he smiled at them in greeting and took his place at the altar dressed in a white tunic with a scarf draped off one shoulder and a turban on his head[3]. But instead of looking at Prince Killian, Martha's eyes were drawn to one of the two guards who trailed behind him. Her eyes followed the guard with a thought tugging at her consciousness until it hit her.

“Doctor,” she said in a low gasp as she gripped his arm.

The Doctor turned to look at her, surprised by her tone of voice. But his surprise quickly turned to worry when he saw her face.

“That’s him,” she continued.

The Doctor followed Martha’s gaze which landed on the guard who flanked Killian and who now stood a short distance in front of where they sat. The Doctor looked at him with no recognition, trying to guess at what Martha meant.

But Martha knew that guard. He had been one of the guards who had brought her and Bisila to safety after the first assassination attempt. Who had been unable to explain the mysterious death of the Councillor who had distracted Killian. And who was now standing a few feet away from Killian and was waiting for Bisila to walk down the aisle.

"What do you mean?" the Doctor asked in a low voice.

"Yesterday, the other man in the engine room," she explained in a hushed tone.

Martha realized she had messed up. She had been so distracted, that she had forgotten thinking she recognized the other voice yesterday. She had heard the man speaking only briefly, but now she remembered the deep brassy voice of a man who was meant to be protecting Princess Bisila and Prince Killian, but was instead involved in a plot to kill them. "His name is General Gregorio."

She also realized the Doctor had been right. They did not know who to trust and neither did Killian and Bisila. It was clear that General Gregoria was someone Killian trusted as one of only two people guarding him now. If they had warned Killian and Bisila the previous day, they would have surely told him and they all would have been doomed.

The music faded out and the room fell into silence for only a moment before a chorus of sound rose up as Bisila appeared at the doorway. She wore a stunning white ballroom wedding dress with a long train. The top half was covered in an array of small flowers which cascaded half way down the dress, which continued into intricate patterns to the bottom[ **4**]. Bisila was also flanked by guards, with Commander Ose standing on her left and another man Martha did not recognize on her right. Two other guards joined them and walked a few paces in front of Bisila.

"What are we going to do?" Martha whispered to the Doctor starting to feel anxious again as Bisila walked down the long aisle to the man she was going to marry and to the man who was waiting to kill her.

“We can't act yet, we don't know what they are planning,” the Doctor said. "Keep an eye on General Gregoria and I will watch Jacobo."

Martha nodded in understanding as she forced herself to sit stoically. But she almost jumped when the Doctor reached down and held her hand. He squeezed her hand in reassurance and she smiled back before turning her gaze back to Gregoria and the bride as she walked down the long aisle.

Bisila reached Killian who walked down the steps and took her hand, before they both walked back up to stand before the officiate. The music died away and the wedding ceremony began.

Martha caught movement at the corner of her eye and turned to see Jacobo stand up and walk to stand by the far back wall between two guards. She glanced at him briefly, wondering what he was up to before the Doctor abruptly stood up and started shouting.

"Everyone get away from that area," the Doctor shouted as he started running towards where Jacobo had been sitting.

But no one reacted, seeming frozen in their seats in surprise as a flash of light filled the room. The blinding light temporarily blinded everyone as smoke began filling the room. Martha could hear screams as people stood up and began running for the doors in panic. However, the guards kept the doors closed and refused to let anyone leave, while the guards around the prince and princess shielded them from the noise and chaos. Except for one.

As soon as the commotion started, Martha's attention was on General Gregoria who reached for his gun and begun raising it towards Bisila. But Martha was already moving and picking up one of the flower stands. She swung it as hard as she could and it connected with General Gregoria's head.

The sound of a loud crash and something breaking as a heavy thump hit the ground, drew attention back to the front of the room and Martha. Bisila and Killian stepped back in shock as they saw her carrying a broken flower stand and General Gregoria at her feet. The guards also turned on her and pointed their guns as Martha saw others do the same to Doctor. 

Martha immediately dropped the broken flower stand and stepped back as she raised up her hands in surrender. 

"Bring the two of them here," Killian ordered as another guard attended to General Gregoria.

Feeling like criminals brought before a judge, Martha and the Doctor went to stand before Killian and Bisila. The rest of the guests seemed to gain some semblance of calm as they saw no one was hurt. Still, they stood far back away from them.

"What is the meaning of this?" Killian demanded to know looking betrayed.

"I did it to protect you both," Martha said.

"I don't understand."

"The explosion was a distraction," the Doctor explained having realized it was a harmless flash grenade Jacobo had set off. "General Gregoria was trying to kill Bisila."

Killian looked at them both in marked disbelief. "You expect me to believe that one of my most trusted generals would betray me? Why would he?"

"I don't know his reasons, but yesterday we overheard him planning something which would endanger Bisila’s life," Martha answered.

"If that is true, why did you not warn us? I have no reason to listen to anything you have to say when you have attacked the person protecting me and he knew the explosion was going to happen before it did," he said.

Bisila touched Killian's arm and he stopped and looked at her. "I want to hear more of what she has to say."

"She's a stranger, why should you?" Killian asked Bisila.

"Because I trust her," Bisila answered. She turned to Martha and said. "Go on please."

"General Gregoria was working with Jacobo who planted the bomb in the crowd," Martha explained turning to look at Jacobo briefly and seeing a look of surprise on his face. "The Doctor figured out what he was up to and was trying to stop him."

"Do you know Jacobo?" Bisila asked Commander Ose.

"Yes I do," he said pointing Jacobo out in the crowd

"Your highness she is lying," Jacobo said in a meek voice as he stepped forward to defend himself as the other guests stepped away from him. "I would never do something so despicable and betray my people."

Bisila considered Jacobo for a moment before turning back to Martha and the Doctor. "Do you know anyone else who is working with them?"

"We can name them all one by one if they won't confess themselves," the Doctor said confidently, even as Martha tried to hide her surprise at his words. They only knew one other person.

"Who else is there?" Killian asked.

"Pao was working with them as well," Martha said.

The guard who was standing next to Jacobo also spoke up on surprise, "I am innocent. I'm no part of it."

"He's not innocent, they both know what happened to Councillor Nelson," Martha said.

"Guards!" Bisila called out, "Bring them both here for questioning."

"Wait!" Jacobo said before looking at the Doctor and Martha with contempt. He took something out of his pocket and held it up showing everyone he held a detonator in his hand and causing the crowd around him to move further back from him. As he spoke, the mild subservient voice he had used before was gone. “I have planted a bomb on this ship capable of killing everyone on board. I will detonate it if you don’t hand over Princess Bisila.”

Martha heard gasps of surprise and watched as the guards who had been approaching Jacobo with confidence falter and stop. Only Pao and the other guard who had been standing next to Jacobo still continued, but to stand in front of Jacobo to protect him.

"If you don’t hand over Princess Bisila I will detonate it and kill everyone on board,” Jacobo repeated.

The Doctor started to open his mouth to tell them the bomb was deactivated but Martha gripped his hand to stop him from speaking. The Doctor looked at her curiously but he remained silent. Martha knew she should probably not be interfering but she thought it was important to let this play out.

Prince Killian stepped in front of Princess Bisila as if shielding her from the whole room. “That is not going to happen,” he said with a booming voice of authority. “I will not let anyone hurt her.”

The room fell deadly quiet as if everyone was afraid that any sudden movement would spell doom for all of them.

"You can stop the charade," Jacobo sneered. "Everyone knows this marriage is a sham. The people of Bioko are our sworn enemies and signing a peace treaty with them was degrading enough. But allowing one of our princes to marry one of them is a humiliating insult to our ancestors. So you can either willing give her up or you can sacrifice everyone on this ship to stop you from making a mockery of our people."

Bisila tried to step around Killian but he turned around and stopped her. "What do you think you are doing?"

“Killian, it’s okay. We tried and we failed. There isn’t anything more we can do,” she said dispassionately trying to step around him again and sacrifice herself to save everyone else.

However, Killian stopped her again. “I am not going to let anyone hurt you. Not for anything or anyone."

Bisila looked at him in surprise, as if seeing him clearly for the first time but she still continued, "We did the best we could but it will be all for nothing if we both die here."

“It will be for nothing if you die here. I can’t do this without you.”

“You can. We made it this far together but I have confidence you can still achieve peace between our people without me,” she said.

“I don’t think you get it. I can’t do anything without you by my side. If you haven’t noticed, I am in love with you. No one is forcing me to marry you. I’m marrying you because I want to. So I can't leave here today without you,” Killian said.

Bisila’s eyes widen in shock as he spoke, seeming unable to speak at his revelation. Looking satisfied that she would not move again, Killian turned back around to face the room and Jacobo.

“If you planted a bomb on this ship, then I can’t stop you. Only you can decide whether the hatred and vengeance which has brought our people to the brink of ruin is more important than finally bringing a stop to this neverending war. Too many are suffering and are in pain. Too many have been sacrificed and had their lives cut short. Too many grow up as orphans only to have guns thrust in their hands." Killian took hold of Bisila's hand and continued, "But we want to change that. Many long for peace and see no future if we continue to send our children to die. We can build a future of hope and peace without the threat of war and death. Will you truly rob us all of the opportunity to establish a peace we have not achieved in millenia."

Jacobo looked at Killian with seething hatred. "Your pretty words and theatrics are not going to change my mind. Hand her over or doom everyone on board this ship.”

“You are the only one who is wishing death for not only the people on this ship, but for millions more on both worlds,” Killian said not budging.

“Then you give me no choice,” Jacobo said.

Jacobo pressed down on the detonator and Martha admired Kilian for not flinching in his conviction even though his decision would have spelt death for everyone on the ship. But, as only two people in that room anticipated, nothing happened.

“Oh sorry,” the Doctor said speaking up as everyone turned to him seeming to still be in shock at still being alive. “I disarmed that bomb earlier. I guess the wedding will just have to go on as planned then.”

Jacobo threw the useless detonator on the ground and made to lunge at Killian and Bisila but the guards swiftly descended on him, Pao and the other guard standing with them. They restrained the three of them.

“Take them away and lock them up,” Prince Killian said before turning to Bisila with a smile of relief.

“You were willing to die for me,” Bisila said in disbelief and awe of the man standing before her.

Killian looked at Bisila with shining eyes as he took her other hand. “I'm in love you Bisila. I've been in love with you since the moment I met you, and that love has only grown with each moment we spend together. I want to spend my life with you. I want to marry you. Will you marry me?”

Bisila seemed more flustered and nervous than at any point Martha had seen her, which was saying a lot considering her life had been threatened twice in the short space of time she had known her. But her face changed into a shy smile as she said, “Yes, I want to marry you too.”

***

Martha and the Doctor stood clapping as Bisila and Killian finished exchanging their vows and shared a kiss before the now joyous crowd. It seemed like everyone in the room could feel the dawn of a new and better era for both their worlds.

“I remember now,” the Doctor whispered to Martha as the newlyweds walked happily down the aisle and out the doors.

“Remember what?” Martha asked.

“I remember where I heard the name Bisila from,” the Doctor said. “It’s a collection of trading planets. One of the most prosperous in the universe. After the death of his wife, Killian named their two planets the coalition of Bisila to show his love for her.”

“She dies?” Martha asked in shock.

“After a very long and happy marriage,” the Doctor said. "Through the generations as their children ruled, they became more prosperous and more planets joined the coalition until they covered a whole galaxy."

Martha looked at the newly weds who turned and smiled as they turned wave to the crowd before they left.

“Ready to go,” the Doctor asked as the crowd began leaving to join the celebrations in the adjoining room. 

Martha nodded, knowing they both had a lot to talk about.

They headed out the doors and walked back towards the Tardis.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This side adventure became so much longer than I anticipated. It was meant to be 2 short chapters but it just kept getting longer and longer, until I ended up with a third chapter. I've also been so busy lately that I didn't know when I would update. Then a mishap caused me to lose a lot of the chapter (I wanted to cry). But I got it done!
> 
> I did enjoy writing this crossover but I'm looking forward to writing the next chapters even more. 
> 
> Thank you for continuing to read my story, for leaving kudos and commenting!
> 
> 1Martha's dress at the wedding[ here](http://krikorjabotian.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/SS14-02-01-W.jpg)[return to text]
> 
> 2The Doctor's tunic[ here ](https://medias.utsavfashion.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/500x/040ec09b1e35df139433887a97daa66f/m/g/mgv124.jpg).[return to text]
> 
> 3Killian's tunic[ here ](https://www.gravity-fashion.com/media/product/e3a/cream-reception-wear-ethnic-indian-banarasi-silk-sherwani-with-moti-mala-b17265-88b.jpg) and what the whole outfit would look like if it was completely white with gold accents[ here](https://medias.utsavfashion.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/500x/040ec09b1e35df139433887a97daa66f/e/m/embroidered-art-silk-sherwani-set-in-cream-v1-mgv513.jpg).[return to text]
> 
> 4Bisila's wedding dress[ here ](http://www.maktumang.com/jeanette).[return to text]


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, the much-needed talk.

Martha walked through the Tardis doors with the Doctor following in behind her. She walked in and stood beside the console as the Doctor went to stand across from her. They stood facing each other for only a moment before the Doctor smiled and walked to the Tardis controls.

“Where to next?” he asked stalling for time.

“Doctor,” Martha said. "We need to talk."

His smile diminished. “I know."

The Doctor slipped his hands into his pockets and stepped away from the console. He walked back to stand in front of Martha, knowing they had spent too much time not saying what they felt. And they could not keep going on the way they were.

But he felt nervous. Because every time he tried to get closer to her, Martha had always pushed him away. Whether it was bringing her to his room and back into his bed, only for her to move back out without a word. Or finally building up the courage to kiss her, for Martha to literally push him away and tell him to act like it never happened.

He had tried to keep his distance after that. Using distance to hide his growing feelings whilst honouring her request to not mention the kiss. But when Martha had been standing in his arms again. So tantalizing close and within reach, he could not hold back from kissing her again. Only for her to run away the first chance she got. But there seemed to be no running away today.

“Remember when you found me again and you asked me to travel with, I initially said no," Martha said.

"Yes," the Doctor nodded confused about why she was talking about that now, of all times.

“When I refused, it was because I felt like a fraud and was running away from something,” she continued.

“Yes you told me.”

“But I didn’t tell you everything," Martha confessed. She paused. Lowering her eyes before looking back up at him again with an unreadable expression. "The truth was, I was running away from you."

“What?” the Doctor asked even more confused than before.

“I was trying to escape the memory of you," she said. "I had traveled with you and loved you, and that almost destroyed my family. I thought the best thing I ever did was saying goodbye to you."

The Doctor could feel his heart sinking as he wondered where she was going with this. And whether she was telling him this as an excuse to leave him again. It would make sense, who would want to be with a man who almost destroyed her life and made her miserable?

The Doctor thought about his past mistakes and felt regret and remorse whelming up inside him. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m not telling you this to get an apology. I’m telling you this so you understand,” Martha said and the Doctor gave her a slight nod. “But then I woke up one day and my life felt like a lie. I had been living my life with one singular purpose. Always being ready to save the earth no matter what it took or what it cost me. But then it hit me, I wasn't really doing it for the people of earth. I was doing it all for you.”

“For me?” the Doctor asked in surprise.

“I became a doctor, something that I always wanted to be, to help people. That's all I ever wanted. But that wasn't the doctor I was. I became the doctor I thought you wanted me to be,” she said. “And I wasn’t sure that was something I wanted. So I left it all behind.”

“And then I showed up again,” the Doctor said looking down with guilt.

“Yes, yes you did.” Martha admitted beginning to smile.

“I’m sorry, I should have never asked you to stay with me,” he said, thinking about how selfish he had been all this time. He had thought only about his feelings and what he wanted. He never truly considered how Martha may feel.

“And miss travelling with you again, never,” Martha said. “You showed me what I had been failing to see until I met you again. My life wasn’t worse off because of you, it was so much better. You showed me another way of living. A better way of living. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have done even a faction of the things I've accomplished.”

“But you said it yourself, I almost destroyed your family and your life. I’m also constantly putting you in danger. It was selfish of me to ask you to stay when I don’t know what’s going to happen to me.”

“I know now what I want and I choose to be here with you, by your side,” Martha answered. The Doctor was about to speak again but Martha spoke first. “Things may not always be easy but being with you has always been worth it. Yes, it's a different life than the one I imagined but it's a life that's become everything to me. And you’ve become everything to me.”

The Doctor's eyes filled with uncertainty. "I don't understand. "

Martha smiled. "I'm saying I love traveling with you. I love being here with you. I'm in love with you. I don't think I ever truly stopped loving you."

"But when I kissed you… you acted like it was nothing.”

“It wasn’t nothing. I just…,” Martha paused and released a sigh. “I was afraid.”

“I’m sorry I-,”

“You really need to stop apologizing,” Martha said.

The Doctor opened his mouth to say something but stopped. He smiled, apparently about to apologize again.

Martha's smile widened. “I love you Doctor. Whether you’re with me or not, I love you. Whether you love me back or not, I still love you. I told you I wanted to stop running away and that's what I'm doing now. I’m not going to hide from how I feel anymore"

“I should have been more honest with you,” the Doctor admitted seeing how stupid he had been. He took a step closer to her. “Martha, I’m in love with you."

The confession was so sudden and unexpected, that Martha at first just stared at him. Disbelieving her own ears. "You’re in love with me?"

"Yes, completely."

"When… when did this start?” Martha asked hardly believing it. She had confessed fully expecting to be rejected. Having convinced herself over and over again that the Doctor could never love her.

"I don’t know. Whether it was in Ireland when I desperately wanted you to stay. Or when you fell sick and I wanted to take care of you and be near you. Or after New York when I could not resist kissing you. I don’t know when it started. I didn’t know I was falling in love with you until I knew I loved you," he said. “Always hoping that you loved me too.”

Martha slowly smiled again as she took a step forward. “I love you too.”

The Doctor closed the space between them and pulled Martha into a kiss. He tried to put all his love and longing into the kiss, hoping Martha would feel his sincerity and love. Martha kissed him back hoping he could feel her own love in return.

“I love you,” he whispered again as he placed soft kisses on her lips.

He kissed her forehead before he hugged her close. They held each other and reveled in the feeling of being loved and wanted.

"I never want to let you go," the Doctor whispered as he held her tighter.

"Then don't," Martha said holding him tighter as well.

When the Doctor's grip loosened, it was only so he could bend down and place soft kisses on her lips again. His kisses were unrushed as he enjoyed the pleasure of being able to kiss her. But as each kiss grew longer and deeper, they could feel the stirrings of desire building within them.

“I want to do more than kiss you,” the Doctor said in between kisses.

“Then what’s stopping you?” Martha asked as she kissed him again.

The Doctor stopped and his eyes darkened with desire. Martha shivered with anticipation as he took her hand and led her to his room. Once inside, he drew her in again and kissed her. Their tongues meeting in a mutual dance as they began touching each other. When they parted again breathless, Martha asked in a teasing voice,

“Is that it?”

“Not by a long shot,” the Doctor replied. "Turn around."

Martha did as he asked and turned around so her back was to him. His hands traveled up her bare arms to stop at the base of her neck. He gripped the zipper and slowly drew it down her back. Letting his thumb graze her skin tantalizingly as he dragged it down the length of her spine. The zipper stopped just below her waist and his warm hands slid into her dress. He pushed the dress off her shoulders and down her arms to fall at her feet. The Doctor next unclipped her bra and also slide it off her shoulders to drop to the floor, leaving her in only her lace underwear.

The Doctor's hands came to rest on her waist and he stepped forward to press his body against her. His lips found the nape of her neck and he mouthed at the curve of her neck as Martha leaned back into him. As she felt the hint of his tongue on her skin, she bent her neck to the side to allow him more access. The Doctor's hands soon circled her waist and ran up her body to cup her breasts, as his lips and tongue continued their attention on her neck. He squeezed her full breasts and his fingers began to circle her nipples, causing Martha to moan in pleasure. It was then Martha began to feel the hardness of the Doctor's cock pressing through his clothes.

"I want you," the Doctor breathed into her skin as one of his hands found her lace underwear and dragged across the top.

"Please, yes," Martha moaned.

His hand slide inside her underwear and found cool wetness between her legs. But the Doctor took his time. His finger circling her opening, teasing her.

"Please Doctor," Martha moaned as she found his hand urging him to do more.

The Doctor obliged her and slid a finger into her and causing pleasure to course through her body. She leaned more heavily against him as he slide another finger inside her. Feeling her legs begin to tremble as teeth grazed her skin and feeling his hard cock pressing in behind her. Martha felt like she would come very quickly if the Doctor continued pleasuring her so.

But without warning, the Doctor pulled out his fingers and spurn her around. He kissed her hungrily as he guided her back towards the bed. As her knees hit the bed, Martha fell back onto it, breaking the kiss.

The Doctor began unbuttoning his tunic as she slide her underwear off, leaving her naked. She returned her attention back to him, watching as the Doctor made quick work of removing his clothes before he joined her on the bed. He moved between her legs and held himself on his elbows, looking down at her. Admiring her naked form as her hands glided over his chest.

"You're so beautiful," he said gazing down at her beautiful form.

Any other time, Martha would have bathed in his adoration and savoured the look of love. But all she could think about was what they were currently not doing as he admired her. So she ran her hand behind his neck and pulled the Doctor down to kiss him.

Their lips met again and Martha opened herself to him, giving him everything she had to give. Loving the taste of his lips and mouth as their tongues explored each other. The feel of his weight pressing down on her body as she wrapped her hands around his back and pulled him down firmer against her. The touch of his hands as they traced the contours of her body. The feel of his hard cock as it rubbed against her. She loved it all. She longed for him. Ached for more.

Martha wrapped her legs around the Doctor and rocked her body into him. Smiling as she heard and felt the gasps of pleasure which escaped his mouth.

"I want you," she whispered into his ear as she traced kisses down his jaw.

The Doctor pulled away to look at her again before kissing her again. "I want you too."

He readjusted himself before he thrust into her, releasing a sigh of pleasure as he rocked into her. He took it slow at first, dragging in slow and smooth. Allowing their bodies to move in rhythm, rising and falling as their bodies moved together. Hands clinging to hot skin as their mouths found each other again. The sound of their love making filling the room as their passion ebbed and flowed. Rising higher and faster until they both crested and tumbled down the waves of their ecstasy.

Afterwards, they lay in each other's arms with their breaths heavy and their heads buzzing.

The Doctor held Martha in his arms, running a hand through her hair as her breathing slowed down. While Martha rested her head on his chest and listened to the sound of his dual hearts beating. A sound she had grown to miss.

After a stretch of silence the Doctor asked. "What are you thinking about?"

"That I wish I had been more honest with you," she admitted.

The Doctor did not immediately respond and when he did, he said, "There is something I didn't tell you."

Martha pulled away from him so she could see his face. "What didn't you tell me?"

"When I ran into you again, it wasn’t a coincidence," the Doctor finally admitted. "I had been looking for you.”

Martha’s eyes opened in surprise. “You were looking for me?”

"I told you before that I was in a bad place. Well, the only person I could think of who could help me was you," he said.

“And that’s why you insisted I travel with you.”

The Doctor nodded his head. “Yes, you have no idea how much I needed you.”

He remembered walking into their bedroom in Ireland after chopping wood and finding Martha reading on the bed. The mindless task had made him ruminate over his seemingly impending doom and the loneliness which had consumed him before meeting Martha again. He did not feel as isolated and alone as before. But the feelings of despondency and insanity which revealed themselves through the Time Lord Victorious still felt embedded within him. So when he had returned to their room, he had been in a foul mood.

But Martha had helped him relax. Had made him smile so easily, when feeling happiness still felt so foreign to him. But what he remembered the most was laying in her lap as she played with his hair and smiled down at him. The look she gave him made him feel like everything was not hopeless in the universe and in him. It was in that moment he knew he had made the right decision by finding her. He had wanted to tell her everything then, but not wanting to ruin the moment he had kept his silence and let the moment pass.

"That's the reason why I asked you to stay with me in Ireland. I thought if I run away with you, everything would be okay as long as you were by my side," the Doctor said. "But you showed me I could no more runaway from life than I could run away from who I am. Over and over again, you helped me and made me fall in love with you.

Martha listened to the Doctor talk in astonishment. "I wish you had told me.”

"I didn't know how," he said.

Martha smiled and said. "You could make it up to me by telling me again how much you love me."

The Doctor’s eyes brightened as he leaned down and kissed her. "I love you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hoping everyone enjoyed this chapter! Please comment and let me know what you thought.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The fluff chapter.
> 
> The song for this chapter is [All This And Heaven Too](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gs5KqERhqZ0) by Florence + the Machine.

When Martha woke up, she was laying on her side with the Doctor lying next to her. His arm around her waist and his fingertips drawing patterns on her bare stomach. The memories of the previous night fresh in her mind and causing her to smile.

The Doctor's hand stopped and he leaned in closer, so she could feel his breath as he whispered into her ear. “Are you awake?”

“Maybe,” Martha murmured while linking her hand with his. Remembering the Doctor telling her he loved her for the first time. Him kissing her afterwards. The feel of his hands as he undressed her. Him laying on top of her. Her smile broadened as she buried her face into the pillow.

The Doctor placed a soft kiss on her neck and asked, “Still sleepy.”

She nodded trying to contain her happiness.

“I could help you wake up,” he said as he nuzzled against her neck.

Martha turned her head away from her pillow, unable to stop grinning.

“But I was enjoying my sleep,” she teased.

The Doctor slide his hand out of her grasp and between legs, “It could be fun.”

Martha twisted around to lay on her back so she could look at him. His face reflected the happiness she felt and she wondered how she had failed to see how he felt for so long. “I could be persuaded."

The Doctor smiled further and moved on top of her, before leaning down to kiss her.

Afterwards, the Doctor lay beside Martha with his head propped on one arm while the other ran up and down her arm. Martha watched the Doctor and thought he seemed way too calm and collected, while she felt wrecked after their love making. She knew she would have to get him back for that.

“Where should we go next?” the Doctor mused as he continued to stroke her arm absentmindedly. "We could go to Florence. It’s beautiful in the spring. And you could meet Leonardo da Vinci. He would not recognize me now, but he was always great fun. Or we could visit the Tomb of Artemis. I always found it fascinating that it was found and then immediately lost again. And a lot of people died during that time. Something bad must have happened, don't you think?"

The Doctor carried on speaking, not seeming to expect an answer. Lost in his own head as he figured out where they should go next.

"Doctor," Martha said taking his hand to get his attention. He always seemed to speak a mile a minute when he was excited. “What about a place where we can enjoy being together for a while. Just you and me, doing more of... this."

Martha almost laughed seeing the Doctor's cheeks grow red.

"Preferably some place hot," Martha continued. "With a beach."

The Doctor smiled. "I know the perfect place."

Martha could hear the waves breaking on the shore as her and the Doctor walked hand in hand down a long shoreline. Orange and gold stretched out from the horizon making the water sparkle. The Doctor had explained that the planet was a resort planet with a constant sunset and had unending offer of cocktails. But only after they landed did he tell her it's one downside. There was a slight chance of being attacked by killer robots. But he assured her with vague and incomprehensible calculations that there was only a minuscule chance of that happening.

Another problem was she had nothing to wear to the beach. The Doctor on the other hand was dressed in striped swim shorts and a white t-shirt. When she first saw him dressed like that, she could not help but stare because he looked so different not wearing his usual brown suit. So instead of being on the beach enjoying the sun and ocean, they were walking along store fronts.

Making a decision, Martha pulled the Doctor into one of the stores. All the bathing suits were at the back of the store while the front was lined with shelves and displays with sunglasses, hats, sunscreen, floaties, etc. The Doctor was drawn to some odd-looking hats while Martha stopped at the displays of ridiculous sunglasses. Some frames were made to look like drinks, such as margaritas topped with tiny umbrellas or beer with foam bubbling over. Others had a tropical theme with birds, fruit, flowers or a combination of two topping the frame.

"What do you think?" the Doctor asked.

Martha turned around and saw him wearing a ridiculous hat with pineapples balanced on top.

Picking up a pair of yellow sunglasses made to look like pineapples she put them on. She turned to the Doctor and asked, “How do I look?”

“Perfect ten,” the Doctor joked.

Martha snorted in laughter and took off her sunglasses and slipped them onto the Doctor.

“Now you’re perfect."

The Doctor picked out a hat made to look like a fruit basket and placed it on her head. "Now we match."

"Not yet," Martha said. She went back to the display for sunglasses and picked out a pair of glasses made to look like watermelon slices. She put them on and asked, "Don't we make the perfect pair?"

The Doctor seemed to be holding back laughter before a mischievous smile formed on his lips. "We need just one more thing."

The Doctor looked around the store before walking across to a different section. “This will complete the look.”

He held up a hula skirt and two coconut halves held together by string. Martha burst into laughter as her eyes took in the barely there top.

"I'm not sure that will fit you," Martha teased, biting her lower lip to stop herself from laughing.

"I don't know," he replied as he held the coconuts to his chests. "I think their perfect."

Martha had to cover her mouth to stop herself from laughing. She walked over to him and grabbed an outfit for herself. She wrapped the hula shirt around her waist before turning to a nearby mirror and holding up the coconut halves to her breasts. “I have major doubts these can actually stay on.”

The Doctor placed down his outfit and the rest of the ridiculous accessories he had on. He came up behind her and held Martha by the waist, looking at her through the mirror as he whispered. “I wasn’t planning on them staying on.”

Martha’s cheeks reddened not expecting his response. She quickly glanced around to make sure no one was looking their way, wondering how the man who blushed at her suggesting they spend time alone together was making such a comment in public.

Still, Martha smiled and asked, “So it’s a private show then?”

“Or a fitting,” the Doctor said with his eyes shifting to the left.

Martha eyes glanced in that direction and saw a sign for change rooms. She felt her heart suddenly begin to race, caught off guard by the Doctor's forwardness. She licked her lips, telling herself to calm down. She was not going to act like a horny teenager. They had already been caught once.

But continuing to play along she asked, “And would that include a private dance?”

“You know I like dancing,” he teased. “I like a lot of things.”

He kissed her on the neck and gave her a look through the mirror that made her heart skip a beat. The Doctor smirked before pulling away to return the things he had been wearing to their proper shelves. Martha watched him leave before shaking her head, thinking he was just impossible. Getting her flustered and then walking away like it was nothing.

Martha also took off the hula skirt and placed the whole outfit back where it belonged. She also returned the ridiculous fruit basket hat which was still on her head and the watermelon glasses.

As she finished doing so, the Doctor picked out a matching pair of black sunglasses and walked over to her. "Try these on."

Martha took the glasses and put them on.

"Perfect, we are taking them," the Doctor said.

"Don't you already have sunglasses?" Martha asked taking them off.

"I do, but they don't match yours," he said.

Martha smiled and walked over to the bathing suits section as she saw the Doctor getting distracted by something else in the store. Thinking if she did not concentrate on why they were here and not the beach, they would not stop fooling around. Martha started picking out bikinis she liked as the Doctor followed along and also pointed out ones he liked (which all seemed to have the same theme of being wildly bright in colour). Martha also picked out some coverups she liked before heading to the change room. But before she left, the Doctor stopped her with a question.

“Do you need any help trying them on?”

Martha smiled at how innocently he asked. But giving gave him a knowing look she said, “Nice try.”

Martha went in alone and when she came out, she was dressed an emerald green bikini the Doctor had pointed out with a cover up over it. "What do you think?"

The Doctor picked up a straw hat and placed it on her head. "Now you're perfect."

Martha readjusted the hat on her head and smiled. They handed the rest of their purchases and her clothes to the shop attendant and asked everything to be sent to their room.

They walked out the shop and headed to the beach which was practically empty. They took off their shoes as they walked to the water’s edge with soft white sand underneath their feet. The crystal-clear water stretched out into the fiery horizon with the sun still hanging low, making it seem like no time had passed at all.

Martha watched as waves rolled onto the shoreline, lapping at the sand before rolling back out. They stood by the water's edge, as Martha dug her toes into the wet sand. A wave came crashing into them, splashing them with water and Martha ran away not expecting the coolness of the water.

The Doctor laughed, not having moved. “I thought you wanted to swim in the ocean.”

“I do. I just didn’t expect the water to be so chilly,” Martha said as she stepped back again as the next wave approached.

“You just need some encouragement,” the Doctor said before he scooped her up into his arms and causing her hat to fall off.

“Doctor, what are you doing?”

“Helping you along,” he said.

He started walking towards the water but Martha shouted, “Wait, I’ll go in on my own.”

“You lost your chance,” he said continuing to walk further into the water until he was almost hip deep and Martha could feel the water splashing her.

“I haven't taken off my dress” she protested.

“You've got plenty more in the room,” he said bending over slightly so her feet entered the water and the waves splashed against her back.

“It’s cold Doctor,” she exaggerated as she clung to him.

“It’s not that cold."

“Maybe for you it's not."

“It’s better if you just jumped in feet first,” the Doctor said.

He threw her in and Martha was completely submerged before coming back up. She stood up and shot him an angry look but he just laughed.

Martha splashed him with water but all the Doctor did was continue to laugh and back away from her. But instead of running out of the water, he moved deeper into it. She continued to splash him until she had to tiptoe to keep standing, while the Doctor easily stood above the water.

“This is not fair,” Martha protested.

“Okay fine, I won’t move anymore,” the Doctor said standing still.

Martha swam towards him but instead of dunking his head, she put her arms around his neck and hugged him, with her legs dangled in the water below her.

“This is much better,” she said smiling.

The Doctor wrapped his arms around her waist. “Much better."

Martha pulled away and gave him a quick peck on the lips but the Doctor frowned.

“Is that it?” he asked.

Martha gave him another short kiss but again he frowned.

“Still not happy?” she asked.

The Doctor shook his head. “Nope.”

Martha smiled having teased him in a similar way before. She kissed him again but this time, her kiss was longer and deeper.

When they returned to their hotel room, Martha said. “I’m going to take a shower before we go to dinner.”

“My offer still stands,” the Doctor said jumping on to their bed.

“What offer?”

“I could help you in there,” he teased again.

Martha tried to hold back a smile as she said, “Well, since you keep insisting, okay.”

The Doctor raised an eye brow in surprise having expected her to refuse again.

“Just let me grab a few things from my bag and I’ll meet you in there,” she said.

The Doctor excitedly jumped off the bed and entered their en suite feeling happy and excited. Everything about their relationship felt new and exciting. He wanted to do everything with her, take her everywhere. He was also eager to be intimate with Martha, but he did not want his eagerness to over step any of her boundaries. This was new for her too and he wanted to be sure she wanted what he wanted.

He turned on the water to start it heating up as he thought about how different his life was in just one day. No more doubts or anxiety about how Martha felt, she loved him and he was an idiot not to see it before. He stripped off his shirt and swim shorts and tested the water with his hand before stepping into the warm shower.

Martha walked into the bathroom after him, still marveling that this was her life now. She did not have to pretend or hold back anything anymore. The Doctor loved her and she loved him. She stepped into the shower as the Doctor turned around and pushed his hair back and away from his face to look at her. Martha could feel desire pooling at the base of her stomach as she took in his tall lean body and his cock which hung between his legs. But he gave her a quizzically look as she still had her own bathing suit on.

“You did offer to help,” Martha teased.

The Doctor laughed and took her face into his hands before kissing her. When he pulled away, he stroked her cheeks and said, “You make me happy.”

Martha stared up at him in wonder, questioning the happiness she felt. She felt too happy. This happiness could not last.

She tiptoed to place a kiss on his lips and said, “You make me happy too.”

“But this doesn’t make me happy,” he said pulling at the string for her top.

“You can do something about it."

The Doctor reached his hands behind her back and pulled the strings of her top loose and it fell off her body. He then reached his hands to her waist and pulled the strings there, so she also stood naked in front of him.

“Happy?” Martha asked.

“Yes,” the Doctor said as his eyes roamed across her body. “Very happy.”

Martha bit her lower lip and looked away as she saw lust darkening his eyes. She grabbed the shower gel and squeezed soap into her hand. She rubbed her hands together to spread it out evenly, before bringing her hands to the Doctor's shoulders.

Her hands ran down his chest to his stomach and back up, before running down his arms. She glanced up at the Doctor, feeling his gaze on her as her hands moved across his body. She wanted him and knew he wanted he too from his hardening penis.

"Turn around," she instructed.

The Doctor obeyed and turned around, and Martha placed more soap into her hands. Her hands lathered up his back, whilst enjoying the view of his backside.

"I'm done," Martha said clearing her throat.

The Doctor turned back around to face her. "My turn," he said as he moved her to stand under the warm shower.

He also poured soap into his hands before rubbing them together. He brought his hands to her shoulders and ran them down her body. Martha felt shivers course through her body as his hands moved across her wet skin. His hands lingering as they moved across her chest and brushing against her nipples, before dipped down to her stomach. His hands sinking just below her waist before rising back up. She could feel the tension building up between them as her own desire for him continued to grow.

"Turn around," he also instructed her and she did.

The Doctor's soapy hands glided down her back and stopped at her waist. His hands ran up her back and grazed her breasts, causing desire to shot through her. Before dropping low again and over her backside. His hands lingering over its round curvature and squeezing her behind.

Martha turned around and the Doctor kissed her as their bodies pressed together as water cascading down their bodies. The mounting sexual tension exploding as they hungrily clung to each other. Want and desire fueling their movements.

Martha's hand reached down and began to stroke the Doctor's hard cock and he moaned into her mouth in pleasure. Martha knew it was time for pay back. She pulled away and smiled deviously as she pushed the Doctor until his back pressed against the shower wall and she went on to her knees.

Martha took hold of his cock and licked around his tip. She heard the Doctor's sharp intake of breath and smiled in pleasure as her lips closed around his head and she sucked it. Her tongue twirled around the head and she felt the Doctor's hand run through her hair as her mouth took in more of his cock. She held his cock as her tongue licked the underside before taking it back into her mouth and sucking, hearing the Doctor's moans of pleasure as she did so. She continued to take him in deeper and sucking, as she heard his breathing becoming more laboured and his legs began to tremble. His hand bracing against the shower wall as her tongue pleasured him.

“You have to stop,” the Doctor said with a ragged breath.

Martha released him and looked up to see his chest and neck flushed. His head thrown back, barely able to hold it together.

"But I like it down here," Martha said as she swirled her tongue around his cock, causing the Doctor to grasp and brace his other hand against the wall. "I think you like it too."

"I can't hold back much longer," the Doctor said breathless.

"I don't want you too," Martha said before taking him back into her mouth.

When the Doctor came, Martha swallowed and watched him through his orgasm. She loved seeing him breathless and losing control. Loved the noises he made when he came. It was such a turn on for her. Being with the Doctor like this, felt like rediscovering him again. She was able to see a different side of him she had never been privy to before. Sides of him only she could see.

"Come here," the Doctor said as his breathing began to slow.

Martha stood up and they began kissing again.

When they stepped out of the shower, they took their time toweling each other dry before moving to the bedroom. They lay on the bed facing each other and Martha ran a finger down the side of his face. The Doctor smiled and closed his eyes, reveling in her touch. Martha also smiled feeling happy. Happier than she had even been before.

She had never understood it when people said they were scared of being too happy because they knew it would not last. But looking at the man she loved and who loved her in return, she finally understood.

"I love you," Martha said.

The Doctor opened his eyes and looked at Martha. One of the hardest things he had ever told anyone, was telling them he loved them. Not because he was not sure about his feelings, but because he was afraid of losing the people he loved. He had lost so much already. But now he had one more thing he was afraid of. That he would be the one to leave Martha behind.

The Doctor kissed Martha tenderly, reassuring himself that he would do everything in his power to stay with her. He would not let anything separate them, including some vague prophecy. When he looked at her again, a smile formed on his lips again. "I love you too."

Martha smiled back and slide a hand behind his neck pulling him into a kiss again. They kissed for a long time, exploring each other’s mouths. Their hands remaining chaste until the Doctor went on top of her and began rocking into her body. Martha felt heat pool between her legs and moaned into his mouth, wanting more of him.

Her legs wrapped around the Doctor's waist to press him more firmly on top of her. Feeling her desire mounting with each thrust, until their lips broke and she grasped in pleasure.

"Doctor!" she moaned as his lips found the skin of her neck and he began sucking it.

As she felt the graze of his teeth against her flesh and his hand found her breasts, Martha moaned his name again. Digging her nails into his back, wanting to feel him closer to her. "I want you."

The Doctor responded by thrusting harder into her which was driving her crazy. She could feel his cock pressing into her thigh and she wanted him to put his length inside of her.

"Doctor I want you," Martha breathed out.

The Doctor kissed up her neck and said against her ear. “Do you want me inside you?”

His tongue twirled around her ear and she found it hard to concentrate for a moment before she almost screamed out, “Yes."

“Say it again,” the Doctor said, using his tongue devilishly again. "Say you want me."

"Yes, yes I want you inside of me," Martha moaned as the Doctor rocked into her again.

The Doctor readjusted himself before pressing into her as Martha gasped in pleasure. Just the feel of him entering her, almost sent her over the edge. Sensing this, the Doctor took it slow. Sliding in and out of her at a maddeningly slow pace, making Martha want more.

The Doctor found Martha's lips again and started kissing her, thrusting into her as her legs squeezed his waist to go faster. His movements became quicker and deeper as he moved inside her, making her break the kiss in a gasp. The Doctor's face found the crook of her neck as he continued to rock into her, as she became unglued beneath him. Martha came first, gasping in pleasure as the Doctor drove her over the edge of ecstasy. The Doctor came shortly afterwards, grunting into his lover's neck.

Afterwards, they lay in each other’s arms. Feeling blissful and relaxed. All their worries feeling far away and their troubles distant. Drifting to sleep with peaceful dreams.

***

After countless lazy days of rest, relaxation and other things, Martha and the Doctor sat on lounge chairs beside each other. Sipping the closest thing to a pina colada they could find.

“You know, you’re completely ridiculous,” Martha said.

“Why?” the Doctor asked as she sipped his drink through a straw.

“You’re sitting at the beach with a suit on."

“What’s wrong with wearing a suit?”

Martha shook her head and took another sip from her drink. But she noticed the pink lei hanging around her neck. Martha put down her drink and removed the lei. She stood up and went to sit on the Doctor’s chair and put it around his neck.

“Better,” she said with a smile which suddenly turned serious.

“What's wrong?” he asked.

"I wish we could stay here and forget everything," she said.

"You don't want to leave?"

"No, it's just...," Martha held back a sigh, knowing where she ought to go. She had made up her mind yesterday, when they had decided to leave today.

“I think I have to go home,” Martha said.

The Doctor looked at her in surprise.

“Just for a visit,” she clarified.

“Oh okay."

“A while ago, I'm not even sure when now. My mum asked me to visit home for Christmas but I have been putting it off because I didn't want to get into another fight with her. But I don’t think I should put it off any longer.”

Martha had told herself she was done with running from things. That meant fixing things at home. She was not sure how her family would take the news of her travelling with the Doctor again, but she did not want to keep them in the dark anymore. That was the mistake she made the last time and she was done with repeating her old mistakes.

"You're not the only one who has been putting things off," the Doctor admitted.

"What do you mean?"

"I'll tell you later." The Doctor said as he put down his drink and took her hand. "Do you want me to come with you?"

"I honestly don't know. I want you there but also me showing up with you may make the situation worse."

"Whatever you want to do, I'm here," the Doctor said.

"Thank you," Martha said as she squeezed his hand in appreciation. She thought for a moment and said. "I think I need to face my family alone. Next time we can go together."

"Okay."

Martha put her head against his shoulder and the Doctor kissed the side of her head as his other hand stroked her hair reassuringly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are near the end of the story and needed one happy, feel good chapter. Hope you enjoyed it!


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song for the chapter is [The End Draws Near](https://youtu.be/wDx1ujCHq5k) from the Doctor Who Soundtrack.

“It’s Christmas eve, right on time,” the Doctor said stepping out of the Tardis.

Martha followed him out, seeing multi-coloured fairy lights over windows and porches. She looked down the street at the house with a Christmas wreath hanging on the door. A house she had called home from childhood into early adulthood.

“What are you going to do while I'm away?" Martha asked.

"Maybe go see some old friends," the Doctor said with a tight smile.

Martha sensed the Doctor's unease so she said, “I will be gone for only two days."

“I know.”

"You won’t even feel it.”

The Doctor nodded his head.

Martha stepped up to him and said, “Come down a little closer.”

The Doctor leaned in closer, expecting a kiss goodbye but Martha took off the straw hat which was still on her head and placed it on him. She smiled thinking he looked a little ridiculous dressed in a brown suit, a straw hat, black sunglasses, and a pink lei.

"Don’t have too much fun without me,” Martha teased as he straightened back up.

“That could never happen,” he replied.

Martha hesitated to leave, feeling unsure if she was making the right decision by going home alone. But the Doctor encouraged her on by saying, “Go on, your family is waiting for you.”

Martha nodded and began walking towards her parent’s home. When she reached the stairs leading to the front door, she turned and saw the Doctor was still standing in front of the Tardis watching her. She stopped and waved goodbye and he smiled and waved back. She smiled and turned back around to run up the stairs and ring the doorbell.

Her father opened the door. “Martha! Martha’s here,” he shouted into the house before hugging her. “We've missed you.”

"Hi, dad."

“Come in,” Clive said stepping aside to let his youngest daughter inside.

Martha looked back one last time but saw the Doctor was gone. She walked in and her father closed the door behind them as Tish popped her head out of the kitchen.

“Martha!” Tish shouted in joy before running over to hug her. “I missed you. You can’t keep disappearing like this.”

“I missed you too,” Martha answered hugging her back.

“You’re a sight for sore eyes,” Francine said behind her sister.

“Hello mum," Martha said as they broke apart.

“I wasn't sure you would come,” Francine admitted.

“I told you I would be here.”

“I know but well, after the last time… I wasn’t sure,” Francine said.

“That’s in the past.”

"You two," Tish said shaking her head.

Francine sighed and hugged Martha and when she pulled away, she looked Martha over. “You look well. Happy.”

“Things have been going well,” Martha said smiling as she heard the doorbell ring.

Her father answered the door again and Martha heard several voices including children, guessing Leo had arrived. She turned and saw she was right as Tish ran over to help Leo’s wife Shonara, who was carrying a huge casserole.

Martha was about to join them when her mother stopped her.

“Thank you for coming home,” Francine said.

Martha smiled before going to greet the rest of her family.

***

When Martha woke on Christmas morning, she had the nagging feeling that she had forgotten something. Something very important. She thought it might have something to do with the dream she had, which she had the odd feeling was a nightmare. But she could not remember it either.

She was still thinking about it as she walked downstairs and into the living room, finding Clive watching the news.

"Merry Christmas!" Martha said cheerfully but barely received a response from her father. She sat down beside him, wondering what gripped his attention. “What are you watching?”

“There was an explosion at Broadfell Prison,” Clive answered. “It was destroyed and everyone inside killed."

"That's terrible," Martha said watching the news as they showed pictures of the burnt ruins of the prison.

"They are saying Lucy Saxon was there,” Clive said in a low voice.

“Lucy Saxon?” Martha asked in surprise before lowering her voice so her mother would not hear. “The Master’s wife?”

Clive nodded his head. “She was locked up for his murder.”

“I had no idea,” Martha said, feeling sorry for Lucy. She had seemed like a broken woman the last time she had seen her. She never thought to check up on what happened to her.

The news showed pictures from the previous night as the building was engulfed in flames with thick black smoke billowing towards the sky. Fire trucks surrounded it as firefighters fought to tame the out of control blaze.

Francine walked past the living room and paused, “You should turn that off before the kids arrive.”

“We will turn it off in a minute,” Martha said listening as the reporter said that the cause of the fire was still unknown. However, dozens of people reported seeing a flash of blue light before an explosion.

When the channel suddenly changed to one of children singing Christmas carols, Martha turned to look at her father. But he looked just as confused until they saw Francine holding the tv remote in her hand.

Martha stared at her mother feeling the tension between them. She did not want to get into it with her so early in the morning but she still said, “We were watching that."

“It’s Christmas, it’s bad enough that all those people died. Let’s not ruin our own Christmas as well," Francine said before walking out of the living room and taking the remote with her.

"Merry Christmas to you too," Martha said under her breath.

Clive heard her sarcasm and said, "Give your mother some time."

Francine and Martha had a big argument the previous night when Martha told her family she was travelling with the Doctor again. Her mother as expected had not taken it well. Blaming the Doctor for making her quit her job at UNIT and somehow finding a way to blame him for her breakup with Tom too.

"She is just worried," Clive said.

"The problem is she doesn't trust me," Martha said.

"You know that's not true," Clive said. "She just worries about you, that's what mothers do. And think about it from her perspective. Things were just seeming to be finally returning to normal when you suddenly called off your engagement and quit your job. Then you come home saying you're travelling with the Doctor again. It was a surprise for us all."

Martha knew how hard things had been for her family after their year of captivity with the Master. And understood her mother worrying. But the Master was dead and could not harm them anymore.

"Just give her time," Clive said again.

With understanding, Martha said, "Okay, I will."

It also was Christmas after all and she just needed to get through one more day before returning to the Tardis. So she stood up and went to help her mother prepare for the family brunch.

***

Martha woke up the following morning with a start, having the same vague feeling she had forgotten something very important. But this time, she had the looming sense of impending doom. It unnerved her and made her rush out of bed to look out the window, hoping to see a blue box down the street. But when Martha looked, the street was empty. She had expected the Doctor to be as eager for her return as she was to see him. But she told herself it was still early.

So she pushed aside her disappointment and tried to not worry. Resolving to enjoy the morning with her family.

But as the morning dragged on and the Tardis failed to appear, the feeling of impending doom only grew. Martha tried calling the cell she gave the Doctor, but it went straight to voicemail making her worry even more.

But Martha knew UNIT had been working on a way of locating the Doctor which included constantly checking all CCTV cameras for any appearance of the Tardis. She decided to try her luck by accessing the program and saw the Tardis had been spotted in multiple locations around the city since the Doctor left her here. But her eyes narrowed in on the last place it had been seen. It was Donna’s house.

The Doctor had told her Donna could never remember anything about the Doctor without dying. So if the Doctor had gone to see her, it must have been something very important.

Martha saw her mother’s car keys laying on the table and grabbed them.

“Mum I’m borrowing your car,” she said putting on her jacket and opening the front door.

“Where are you going?” Francine shouted back from the other room.

“Just to see some friends since I’m in town. I’ll be back later,” Martha said walking out the door.

When Martha arrived at Donna’s house, she stayed seated inside the car, unsure how to proceed. She was not sure if Donna seeing her would trigger any memories which would be dangerous for her, so ringing the doorbell seemed out of the question. But just then, Donna walked out of the house with a man and drove off. When the car was out of view, Martha got out of the car and ran to the front door. She rang the doorbell twice and waited.

The door swung open and Martha saw it was Donna’s mother, Sylvia Noble.

“Hi,” Martha said. “I know you don’t know me but I know Donna and the Doctor. It’s very important I find him and I know he was here not too long ago.”

“Well, he is isn’t here anymore. He stole my father and disappeared,” Sylvia said.

“Any idea where they might have gone?”

“I don’t know. Dad just grabbed a book and left,” Sylvia said.

“A book?”

“It was a present from Donna. It was about that billionaire. Joe Smith… no, was it Joshua Smith…. no…”

“Joshua Naismith?” Martha asked.

“Yes, that’s the one,” Sylvia said.

“Thank you,” Martha said turning to run back to the car.

“Tell the Doctor to bring back my father and never return,” Sylvia shouted after her as Martha waved goodbye.

Martha knew exactly who Joshua Naismith was. UNIT had been watching him for some time, ever since he had ‘acquired’ some alien technology after the fall of Torchwood 1. Joshua also employed a private army which was not the norm for most people who had nothing to hide.

Martha drove to his address which was a large estate that was well-guarded. But Martha knew how to get in undetected. She parked outside and snuck inside. She walked cautiously through the grounds with no sign of the Doctor, Wilfred or the Tardis. But Martha had a hunch they were here. She entered the house but when she turned the corner, she bumped into a man. A man she recognized.

“Wilfred! You’re Donna’s grandfather,” Martha said.

Wilfred’s look turned from one of worry into a broad smile. “You know my Donna?”

“Yes, I’m Martha, we were good friends,” Martha said smiling back.

“The Doctor mentioned you,” Wilfred said smiling broadly.

They shared a look, both knowing Donna should be here with them too. But Martha knew she had no time to mourn the loss of her friend, there were more pressing matters.

“What’s going on? Where is the Doctor?” she asked.

Wilfred proceeded to explain the dreams he had been having about the former Prime Minister Harold Saxon. Of how he and the Doctor were chasing him.

“Wait what?” Martha asked confused. “You were chasing the Master? Harold Saxon?”

“Yes,” Wilfred confirmed.

“But he is dead. I saw him die,” Martha insisted.

“Well, he is alive now,” Wilfred said which left Martha perplexed and wondering how that was possible.

Wilfred carried on explaining that Donna gave him a book about Joshua Naismith and the Doctor had brought them here, where they met green cactus people. Martha did not ask what that meant, or the next thing he said about a giant sick bed which could mend whole planets and caused the Doctor to run out the room.

“I'm headed to where he is now,” Wilfred said.

“Lead the way,” Martha said.

Wilfred led them down a corridor but just before they reached the Doctor, they came to an abrupt stop when an image flashed in their heads. Martha held her head in pain as she saw the maniacal laughter of a man she had wished to never see again and thought dead. But his imagine repeated over and over again in her head as Martha suddenly remembered the dreams, she kept forgetting each morning. The ones which felt like nightmares, which she had no idea she shared with every other person on earth, including Wilfred. They had all been dreaming of the Master.

Martha and Wilfred both stumbled forward with images of the Master flashing in their heads and through a door. The Doctor was lying on the floor in a room full of flashing computer screens and other people holding their heads and seeing the same thing they were.

"Doctor! Doctor!" Wilfred shouted out.

The Doctor turned and saw both Wilfred and Martha stumble into the room.

“Martha! What are you doing here?” the Doctor asked.

But Martha failed to respond as her eyes found the Master standing between two pillars as a ball of energy surrounded him. Martha could barely believe her eyes even as images of the Master flooded her head.

“Doctor! Doctor, there's, there's this face,” Wilfred said.

The Doctor got off the floor and turned his attention to Wilfred. Running to him and asking, “What is it? What can you see?”

Wilfred’s answer seemed unintelligible as he kept repeating “it’s him” before gripping his head.

The Doctor looked at Martha who was also gripping her head and he ran to her. “Martha! Martha, what’s wrong?”

“It’s the Master. He is in my head,” Martha said as the laughing continued to grow louder. She hated it and wanted it to stop.

The Doctor ran to the computer screens trying to shut them off.

“I can't turn it off,” the Doctor shouted.

“That's because I locked it, idiot,” the Master shouted.

“Doctor make it stop,” Martha pleaded. Feeling helpless again like when she was trapped in a glass chamber rapidly filling up with blue liquid.

The Doctor pulled her with him and shouted. “I need you to get inside here.”

The Doctor opened a glass door and Martha swapped places with the man inside and closed the door.

“Just need to filter the levels,” the Doctor said which made no sense to her.

But almost instantly the image of the Master disappeared and Martha looked up in surprise and relief at the Doctor. “His image, it’s gone!”

“Radiation shielding. Now press the button. Let me out,” he directed.

Martha pressed the red button in front of her and the door opened. The Doctor ran and grabbed Wilfred and pushed him inside as well, closing him inside.

After a few seconds of being inside the glass chamber Wilfred said, “Oh, I can see again! He's gone.”

“Something about the radiation shielding in here,” Martha said shrugging her shoulders. It worked and that’s all that mattered.

“Fifty seconds and counting,” the Master said with glee.

“For what?” the Doctor asked.

“Oh, you're going to love this.”

The Doctor stood in front of the Master and asked. “What is it, hypnotism? Mind control. You're grafting your thoughts inside them, is that it?”

“Oh, that's way too easy. No, no, no. They're not going to think like me, they're going to become me. And, zero!” the Master shouted in delight.

A blast of energy radiated from the Master causing everyone in the room to shield their eyes. When they looked up again, everyone's face around the room began to blur.

“You can't have,” the Doctor said.

“What did he do?” Martha asked afraid to hear the answer.

But she did not have to wait for an answer as everyone around her except for the Doctor and Wilfred changed and became the Master. Every single person in the room. No, it seemed like every single person in the world, Martha thought with horror as she looked up at the tv screen and saw the news anchor had also changed into the Master.

“What have you done, you monster?” Wilfred asked

“Oh, I'm sorry, are you talking to me?” the Master asked.

“Or to me?” another Master asked.

“Or to me?” the rest of the room chanted one after another as they all stood as the Master.

“Breaking news!”

The Doctor, Wilfred and Martha turned to look at the tv and saw the news anchor, who was also the Master, speaking.

"I'm everyone. And everyone in the world is me!”

The Master walked up to the Doctor and said, “The human race was always your favourite Doctor. But now, there is no human race. There is only the Master race.”

The Master burst into maniacal laughter as if what he said was the cleverest thing ever spoken in the history of the universe.

The Master had them all tied up, with the Doctor bound and gagged upright to a trolley, whilst Martha and Wilfred were strapped to chairs beside him.

“I have enough soldiers and weapons to turn this planet into a warship,” the Master said with pride.

“You won’t get away with this,” Martha said as she struggled against her restraints.

“What are you going to do?” the Master asked spreading his hands.

“We are going to stop you,” Martha said confidently.

“You and what army?” the Master asked approaching her.

Martha knew the Master had control of all Earth’s defenses and military power. He had control of everyone. But she did not care because she knew she would do everything in her power to stop him and save her family.

“Your stupid tricks are not going to work on me this time,” the Master said as he looked at her with contempt.

Frustrated, Martha gave no response.

The Master smiled broadly and turned to face the Doctor. “Nothing to say, Doctor? What's that? Pardon? Sorry?”

“You let him go, you swine,” Wilf said.

“Oh, look at that. Your dad's still kicking up a fuss,” the Master said approaching Wilf.

“Yeah? Well, I'd be proud if I was,” Wilf said.

“Hush, now,” the Master said with anger. “Listen to your Master.”

The Master walked back to the Doctor and removed his gag.

“Well that’s better, hello,” the Doctor said with false cheer.

The Master leaned into the Doctor’s face and asked, “Tell me, where's your Tardis?”

“You could be so wonderful,” the Doctor said.

“Where is it?”

“You're a genius. You're stone cold brilliant, you are. I swear, you really are. But you could be so much more. You could be beautiful. With a mind like that, we could travel the stars. It would be my honour. Because you don't need to own the universe, just see it. To have the privilege of seeing the whole of time and space. That's ownership enough.”

“Would it stop, then?” the Master asked. “The noise in my head?”

“I can help.”

“I don't know what I'd be without that noise,” the Master mused.

“I wonder what I'd be, without you,” the Doctor said.

“Yeah,” the Master answered.

“What does he mean? What noise?” Wilf asked and the Master turned to face him.

“It began on Gallifrey, as children. Not that you'd call it childhood. More a life of duty,” the Master said sitting down. “Eight years old. I was taken for initiation, to stare into the Untempered Schism,”

“What does that mean?” Wilf asked.

“It's a gap in the fabric of reality,” the Doctor answered. “You can see into the Time Vortex itself. And it hurts.”

“They took me there in the dark. I looked into time, old man, and I heard it calling to me. Drums. The never-ending drums,” the Master said.

“Listen to it. Listen,” the Master said listening to something the rest of them could not hear.

“Then let's find it. You and me,” the Doctor offered.

“Except. Oh. Oh, wait a minute. Oh, yes. Oh, that's good.”

“What? What is?” the Doctor answered.

“The noise exists within my head, and now within six billion heads. Everyone on Earth can hear it. Imagine. Oh. Oh, yes,” the Master said.

The Master's skeleton flashed briefly visible. Surprising Martha.

“The Gate wasn't enough. You're still dying,” the Doctor said.

“This body was born out of death. All it can do is die. But what did you say to me, back in the wasteland? You said the end of time,” the Master said.

“I said something is returning. I was shown a prophecy. That's why I need your help,” the Doctor said.

Martha looked at the Doctor wondering what he was talking about. He told her about a prophecy but he never mentioned that to her. They needed to talk.

“What if I'm part of it?” the Master asked. “Don't you see? The drumbeat is calling from so far away. From the end of time itself. And now it's been amplified six billion times. Triangulate all those signals. I could find its source. Oh, Doctor. That's what your prophecy was. Me!”

The Master slapped the Doctor as he finished speaking.

“Don’t you dare touch him again,” Martha said with anger.

“What are you going to do?” the Master asked her but she had no answer. The Master laughed and looked at the Doctor. “You and your little pets. I should have killed her back then, saved us both the trouble.”

“No,” the Doctor said as he watched the Master approach Martha.

He placed a hand on Martha’s shoulder and she tried to shrug it off but the Master pressed down painfully, making her stop struggling.

"Don't hurt her," the Doctor pleaded.

The Master looked at the Doctor with a malicious smile and asked, “Where's the Tardis?”

“No. Just stop. Just think,” the Doctor said.

Seeming exasperated, he said to the guard, “Kill her.”

A helmeted guard walked over to Martha and held a gun to her head.

“Don’t touch her,” Wilfred said, struggling against his restraints.

“I need that technology, Doctor. Tell me where it is, or she dies.”

“Don’t tell him anything,” Martha said.

“I'll kill her right now!” the Master shouted getting impatient.

“Actually, the most impressive thing about you is that after all this time, you're still bone dead stupid,” the Doctor said.

“Take aim,” the Master said.

“You've got six billion pairs of eyes, but you still can't see the obvious, can you?” the Doctor said.

“Like what?” the Master asked releasing Martha's shoulder.

“That guard is one inch too tall,” the Doctor said.

The guard hit the Master with his rifle butt, knocking him out. The guard then removed his helmet to reveal a green head with spikes.

“Oh my god, I hit him. I've never hit anyone in my life,” the green spiky head said.

Another woman who was also green with spikes around her head ran in. “Well, come on. We need to get out of here fast.”

“God bless the cactuses!” Wilfred cheered.

“That's cacti,” the Doctor corrected.

“That's racist!” the man said.

Martha almost laughed in relief, finally understanding what Wilfred meant by meeting green cactus people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm hoping to have the next chapter up by next weekend.


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song for the chapter is [Four Knocks](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vODdnLSd3og) from the Doctor Who Soundtrack.

Rossiter freed Martha from her restraints, explaining that he was a Vinvocci who had disguised himself as a human to steal back the Immortality Gate from Joshua Naismith. But the Master had taken control of the Gate and used it to turn the human race into clones of himself.

Wilfred, on the other hand, was freed by Addams, who was the other Vinvocci technician. Once Martha and Wilfred were freed, Rossiter started freeing the Doctor.

“This is taking too long. We've got to get out,” Addams complained.

“There are too many buckles and straps,” Rossiter said as Martha went to help.

“Just wheel him,” Addams shouted heading for the door.

“No, no, no Get me out,” the Doctor shouted as Rossiter started wheeling him out. “Martha! No, no, no, don't. Don't! No, no, no.”

Rossiter wheeled the Doctor out, following Addams as Martha and Wilfred followed behind.

“Which way?” Rossiter asked as they entered the hallway.

“This way,” Addams answered as she turned right and began running.

“No, no, no, no, no. The other way. I've got my Tardis,” the Doctor said as Rossiter followed Addams.

"I know what I'm doing," Addams shouted back.

"No, no, no, just just listen to me!" the Doctor continued shouting.

"Wait stop!" Martha said running ahead to block Rossiter. "Getting to the Tardis is our best shot."

"It's the other way," the Doctor shouted.

"I know the way," Wilfred said as he began running in the opposite direction.

Rossiter turned around and followed Wilfred with Martha close behind. Addams was forced to stop and reluctantly followed them as well. Wilfred led them down the opposite corridor and through successive doors until they reached the Tardis.

Martha ran ahead and opened the Tardis doors and Wilfred ran inside. Rossiter followed with the Doctor but Addams came to a dead stop.

She looked dubiously at the blue police box, "Is that it? We can't possibly all fit inside there."

"It's now or never," Martha said hearing footsteps in the distance.

Having no other choice, Addams ran inside and Martha followed her inside, closing the doors behind her. Inside she found both Addams and Rossiter gaping.

"It's... it's bigger," Rossiter said as he looked around the console room, trying to figure out how it was so big.

"Yes, it's bigger on the inside," the Doctor said impatiently. "Now let me out of this thing."

Rossiter was about to do it but Martha said, "Let me." Rossiter stepped aside and Martha began undoing the straps. “I leave you for five minutes and look what happens."

“It was more than five minutes,” the Doctor defended.

Martha smiled but her smile diminished when she said, “You should have come and got me."

“I know.”

“Then why didn’t you?”

The Doctor remained silent so Martha offered a suggestion, “Because of the Master?”

“Maybe,” he stated.

“You’re such an idiot sometimes,” she said. Before undoing the last strap, Martha smiled mischievously and leaned in closer to whisper, “I kind of like you tied up, it gives me ideas.”

The Doctor raised an eyebrow wondering if they were really having this conversation right now.

Martha grinned as she undid the last strap and the Doctor stood up.

He smiled and said, "I'm happy you're here."

"Me too," Martha said still grinning.

The Doctor hugged her and asked, “Are you okay?”

Martha nodded her head automatically even though she was not okay. Her whole planet was once again held hostage by the Master. But she held the Doctor tighter, finding comfort in not being alone this time. With him by her side, she felt everything would be okay.

"Are you okay?" Martha asked in return. 

"Yeah," the Doctor answered instantly.

But Martha's grip loosened at his response. She knew they both needed to stop doing this and be more honest. And there was a lot the Doctor was keeping from her. She pulled away from him.

“What are we going to do?" Martha asked. "My family. Everyone on Earth."

The Doctor held her by the shoulders and said, “Everything is going to be alright. I promise.”

“Excuse me," Addams said interrupting them. "Sorry to interrupt you but can you take us to our ship. We want to go home.

"Shouldn't we... help," Rossiter asked Addams.

"We are just a salvage crew," Addams said. "This is not our problem and we don't need to get any more involved in Earth's problems than we already have been."

"I'll take you home," the Doctor agreed as he walked towards the console. "Where's your ship?"

Addams gave the coordinates which were just outside the Earth's atmosphere. They said their goodbyes and the Doctor let them off before leaving.

“Where are we now?” Wilfred asked.

“Still above Earth,” the Doctor answered.

“In space?" Wilfred asked suddenly excited.

“Yep."

“Do you want to have a look outside?” Martha asked.

"Can we?"

"Of course," Martha said.

The two of them walked to the Tardis doors and Martha opened them.

Wilfred stared wide-eyed at the brilliant blue Earth. He held on to the side of the door as if afraid he would fly away and cautiously leaned out to look down below. “We're in space right now!

“Yes we are,” Martha said.

"I'm an astronaut!” Wilfred said with childish joy which caused Martha to smile.

Martha looked down at the Earth, thinking about all the people below them and what the Master had done to them. She looked back at the Doctor who was watching them before she looked back outside in time to see a bright object streaking across the sky. She watched as the object entered the Earth’s atmosphere and crashed on to its surface.

Martha turned back around to look at the Doctor who was now leaning over the console and looking pensive. She walked over to him and said, “Doctor can we talk?”

They walked out of the console room to a place they could talk together alone.

"You've got a lot of explaining to do," Martha said.

"I know," the Doctor said not attempting to hide it.

"Why don't you start from the beginning," Martha said.

“Well... there is something I didn't tell you before,” the Doctor said. “The Ood, they have been calling to me for some time now. So I went to see them.”

“Calling you? Since when? Why?”

“Since we left Ireland. At the time I didn’t know why and didn’t want to find out,” the Doctor admitted.

“So why did you wait for me to leave the Tardis before going to them?” Martha asked.

“They told me I was going to die,” the Doctor said. “If something happened to me, I wanted you to be safe.”

Martha stared at the Doctor in disbelief. “So you left me at my parents. Did you think about how I would feel if you disappeared from my life without any explanation?”

“I’m sorry.”

Martha could feel herself becoming upset, but she took a deep breath to calm herself and asked, “What did the Ood say?”

“They told me another prophecy. That something was returning through the dark and the fire and the blood. Returning to this world. That the Master was part of a greater design and a shadow was falling over creation. That it would be the end of time itself.”

“What does that all mean?” Martha asked confused. None of it made sense.

“I’m not completely sure yet,” the Doctor said.

“But the Master, he has something to do with the prophecy of your death, doesn’t he?”

“It's possible.”

“Then why are you protecting him?” Martha asked.

The Doctor looked at Martha in surprise.

“I know you have a way of stopping him. Why else would you be waiting and not doing anything? Am I wrong?”

“Well..."

“You have a way of saving everyone on Earth don’t you?” Martha asked directly.

The Doctor nodded his head.

“Then why aren’t you doing it?” she asked.

“Because I need to find another way,” the Doctor said.

“And what if there isn’t another way?”

“I’ll find another way,” he said firmly.

Martha felt herself getting angry. She thought they were a team and had agreed to face everything together. But instead, the Doctor had been keeping things from her. Had even left her on Earth knowing he might never return and had said nothing.

She was also angry because the Doctor was putting the Master ahead of every single person on Earth. She understood the Master was the only other Time Lord in existence and she knew the Doctor cared deeply for him. But this was not only about the two of them anymore.

“And what about my family?” Martha asked. “What about everyone else on Earth? Is the Master's life more important than their lives?”

“We always have a choice,” he said.

“I’ve always trusted you. Even when I had my doubts, I trusted you. But right now, you’re wrong. You have a chance to save everyone, including yourself and you’re not doing it,” Martha said.

“I’m sorry,” the Doctor said.

Frustrated, Martha walked away from him, afraid of what she might say.

When Wilfred turned around to say something, he saw he was alone.

“Doctor? Hello? Hello? Martha? Anyone?” Wilfred called out but received no response.

But then a woman dressed in a white suit appeared in front of him. It was the woman he had once seen in a church, who spoke of a man in a blue box who had defeated a demon who fell from the sky. She had told him perhaps he was coming back and that had given him confidence to find the Doctor, and he had.

“Events are closing,” the woman said. “The day is almost upon us. But tell me, old soldier. Did you take arms?”

“I brought this,” Wilfred said as he took out a gun he had been hiding in his pocket. “But what am I supposed to do?”

“This is the Doctor's final battle. At the end of his life, he must stand at arms, or lose himself and all this world, to the End of Time,” she said.

“But he never carries guns. He doesn't do... Who are you?”

“I was lost, so very long ago,” she said.

Wilfred looked down at his gun and when he looked back up, the woman was gone and he was alone again. He looked back out at the Earth, his home, and wondered if he would ever go back to it again. He sat down and dangled his feet outside the door as he looked out at it.

Martha returned to the console room and saw Wilfred sitting by the door alone. The Doctor followed behind her but Martha went to stand against the console not wanting to talk. The Doctor saw Wilfred sitting alone and walked over to sit next to him.

“I've always dreamt of a view like that," Wilfred said. He pointed at the Earth and said, “It's dawn over England, look. Brand new day. My wife's buried down there. I might never visit her again now.” Wilfred paused then and asked. “Do you think he changed them, in their graves?”

“I'm sorry,” the Doctor said feeling like he had failed everyone.

“No, not your fault.”

“Isn't it?”

“Oh, 1948, I was over there,” Wilfred said pointing to another part of the Earth. “End of the Mandate in Palestine. Private Mott. Skinny little idiot, I was. Stood on this rooftop, in the middle of a skirmish. It was like a blizzard, all the bullets in the air. The world gone mad. Yeah, you don't want to listen to an old man's tales, do you?”

“I'm older than you,” the Doctor said.

“Get away.”

“I'm nine hundred and six.”

Wilfred looked at the Doctor in surprise. “What, really, though?”

The Doctor nodded his head. “Yeah.”

“Nine hundred years,” Wilfred said impressed. “We must look like insects to you.”

“I think you look like giants,” the Doctor said honestly.

“Listen, I, I want you to have this,” Wilfred said as he took out his revolver from his pocket and held it out to the Doctor. “I've kept it all this time, and I thought-.”

“No,” the Doctor said refusing to take it.

“No, but if you take it, you could-“

“No,” the Doctor said cutting him off again. “You had that gun in the mansion. You could have shot the Master there and then.”

“Too scared, I suppose.”

“I'd be proud,” the Doctor said.

“Of what?” Wilfred asked.

“If you were my dad,” the Doctor said smiling.

“Oh, come on, don't start," Wilfred said dismissively. "But you said, you were told he will knock four times and then you die. Well, that's him, isn't it? The Master. That noise in his head? The Master is going to kill you.”

The Doctor paused before he admitted it, knowing Martha was listening to their conversation. “Yeah.”

“Then kill him first,” Wilfred said, holding out the gun to him again.

“And that's how the Master started,” the Doctor said pushing it away. “It's not like I'm an innocent. I've taken lives. I got worse. I got clever. Manipulated people into taking their own. I can't. I just can't.”

“If the Master dies, what happens to all the people?” Wilfred asked.

“The template snaps,” the Doctor confessed.

“What, they go back to being human?” Wilfred asked and the Doctor nodded his head. “They're alive and human,” Wilfred clarified and again the Doctor nodded his head. “Then don't you dare, sir. Don't you dare put him before them. Now you take this. That's an order, Doctor. Take the gun. You take the gun and save your life,” Wilfred said holding out the revolver to the Doctor again as his voice became emotional and tears formed in his eyes. “And please don't die. You're the most wonderful man and I don't want you to die.”

The Doctor glanced at Martha and could see she was angry and upset with him. He had kept her in the dark about going to see the Ood and had not told her when the Master returned. But he had done it to all because he loved her and wanted to protect her.

And now he was disappointing not only her but Wilfred as well. But he could never do what they wanted. Even after everything the Master had done, he could never take his life. And they had once been friends. Even now, the Doctor still hoped they could be friends once more.

“Never,” the Doctor said resolutely to Wilfred and Martha.

Martha looked down, trying to hold back tears. All-day she had had a feeling of dread, and now she knew why. She did not want the Doctor to die but she knew the Doctor would never take up arms. She had seen it again and again. He always found another way. So how could she be upset at him for doing something she loved him for. For selflessly putting someone else’s life before his own. She just hated it was for the Master.

But then they all heard the Master’s voice.

“A star fell from the sky. Don't you want to know where from?" the Master asked. "Because now it makes sense, Doctor. The whole of my life. My destiny. The star was a diamond. And the diamond is a White-Point Star. And I have worked all night to sanctify that gift. Now the star is mine. I can increase the signal and use it as a lifeline. Do you get it now? Do you see? Keep watching, Doctor. This should be spectacular. Over and out.”

“What's he on about?” Wilfred asked. “What's he doing? Doctor, what does that mean?”

“A White-Point Star is only found on one planet,” the Doctor said standing up. “Gallifrey.”

“Gallifrey? How’s that possible?” Martha asked as she walked around the console towards the Doctor.

“It means it's the Time Lords. The Time Lords are returning,” the Doctor said with a look of horror in his eyes which scared Martha.

Wilfred still cheerful asked, “Well, I mean, that's good, isn't it? I mean, that's your people.”

The Doctor took Wilfred's revolver and ran past Martha to the Tardis console. He turned on the console screen and a beeping sound started. It was to the rhythm of four repeating beats.

“What's that?” Martha asked as she walked to stand beside him. “Where is it coming from?”

“It’s coming from Earth. It's on every single wavelength, broadcasting across the universe,” the Doctor said still with that wild look in his eyes. “The Time Lords are returning.”

“But you said your people all died in the Time War,” Martha said.

“The whole War was Timelocked. Like, sealed inside a bubble. It's not a bubble but just think of a bubble. Nothing can get in or get out of the Timelock. Don't you see? Nothing can get in or get out, except something that was already there,” the Doctor said.

“The signal. Since he was a kid,” Wilfred said having joined them by the console.

“If they can follow the signal, they can escape before they die,” the Doctor said.

“Returning through the dark and the fire and the blood. Returning to this world,” Martha said quoting aloud what the Ood had told the Doctor. Finally understanding what that meant.

“Well, then, a big reunion. We'll have a party,” Wilfred said.

“There will be no party,” the Doctor said.

“But I've heard you talk about your people like they're wonderful,” Wilfred said.

“That's how I choose to remember them, the Time Lords of old. But then they went to war. An endless war, and it changed them right to the core. You've seen my enemies, Wilf. The Time Lords are more dangerous than any of them.”

“What do you need us to do?” Martha asked.

“I need to go back and stop the Master,” the Doctor said. “And I need you both to stay in here, where it’s safe.”

“There is not a chance of that happening,” Martha said.

“If you think I’m leaving you alone, you’ve got another thing coming,” Wilfred said as well.

The Tardis crash-landed and seemed to spin out of control, throwing them all off balance and their feet. As soon as it came to a stop, the Doctor stood up and ran out of the Tardis. When Martha and Wilfred followed him out, they saw they were not where they were supposed to be.

“We are on the roof,” Wilfred said.

“And they are below us,” the Doctor said looking through the roof window at the Master below as five other figures began to appear. “There is too much interference for the Tardis to get us down there.”

“Then how do we get down,” Martha asked looking around the roof for a way down.

“There is one way,” the Doctor answered as he took a few steps back.

Martha looked at the Doctor and then at the window. “Don’t you dare.”

But the Doctor gave her a cheeky grin and said, “Allons-y!”

Martha watched in dismay as the Doctor crashed through the window and fell twenty-five feet to the ground below. She ran to the edge and looked down to make sure he survived the fall. To her relief, she saw the Doctor had survived but seemed to be struggling to get up.

“We have to get down there,” Martha said to Wilfred as she looked around and saw a skylight window.

The Doctor fell through the glass and landed between the Master and Rassilon as chards of glass fell around him. Rassilon stood with four other Time Lords behind him. Two of them covered their faces with their hands like the weeping angels, a punishment used by Time Lord leaders of old for traitors to bear witness before their execution. The Doctor took no notice of them as he lay on the ground with his face cut up by glass and a sharp pain coursing from his side, indicating he likely had broken a rib or two. He tried to get up but failed.

“My Lord Doctor. My Lord Master,” Rassilon, the Lord President of Gallifrey, said. “We are gathered for the end.”

“Listen to me. You can't!” the Doctor said trying to push himself off the ground.

“It is a fitting paradox that our salvation comes at the hands of our most infamous child,” Rassilon said.

“Oh, he's not saving you,” the Doctor said pushing himself on to his knees. “Don't you realise what he's doing?”

“Hey, no, hey! That's mine. Hush. Look around you. I've transplanted myself into every single human being. But who wants a mongrel little species like them, because now I can transplant myself into every single Time Lord. Oh, yes, Mister President, sir, standing there all noble and resplendent and decrepit. Think how much better you're going to look as me,” the Master said.

Rassilon raised his metal gauntlet and held out his hand, causing it to glow. The Master screamed for him to stop as all the Masters in the room and across the planet began to blur and turned back into being human.

“On your knees, mankind,” Rassilon commanded and everyone in the room obeyed in fear.

“No, that's fine,” the Master said unperturbed by the failure of his plan. “That's good because you said salvation. I still saved you. Don't forget that.”

“The approach begins,” Rassilon said as the Earth began to shake.

“Approach of what?” the Master asked confused.

“Something is returning. Don't you ever listen?" the Doctor said frustrated. "That was the prophecy. Not someone, something."

“What is it?” the Master asked still at a loss for what was happening as the shaking intensified.

“They're not just bringing back the species,” the Doctor said. “It's Gallifrey. Right here, right now.”

The whole world seemed to tremble and quake as a big burning red planet appeared in the sky. Gallifrey seemed to fill up the whole sky, covering it as the planet was thrown into shadow and the ground continued to shake uncontrollably.

Everyone in the room began to panic as the ground beneath them shook and the light outside faded. They started running out of the room as Martha and Wilfred pushed their way in. A woman tripped and fell to the ground spraining her ankle, and began crying for help as Martha ran to help her.

"Wilfred, can you help her out?" Martha called to him and he came over.

"What about the Doctor?" Wilfred asked as he joined Martha.

"I'm going to stay with him. Please help make sure everyone gets out okay," Martha said.

"Okay," Wilfred agreed as they helped the woman to her feet and Wilfred helped her hobble out the room.

But Martha heard someone hammering on the door of the locked glass booth and also crying for help. She ran to the technician and entered the neighbouring booth, pressing the red button as the Doctor had instructed her before. Not hearing the Doctor trying to stop her.

The technician's door opened and he stepped out. He paused for a moment but Martha said, "Go on, get to safety." The technician ran off, leaving Martha trapped inside.

“But, I did this," the Master said joyfully. "I get the credit. I'm on your side. But this is fantastic, isn't it? The Time Lords restored.”

The Doctor looked up at his homeworld feeling no happiness as it returned. “You weren't there in the final days of the War. You never saw what was born. But if the Timelock's broken, then everything's coming through. Not just the Daleks, but the Skaro Degradations, the Horde of Travesties, the Nightmare Child, the Could-have-been King with his army of Meanwhiles and Never-weres. The War turned into hell. And that's what you've opened, right above the Earth. Hell is descending."

“My kind of world,” the Master said with a smile of glee.

“Just listen!” the Doctor almost shouted. “Because even the Time Lords can't survive that.”

“We will initiate the Final Sanction. The end of time will come at my hand. The rupture will continue until it rips the Time Vortex apart,” Rassilon said.

“That's suicide,” the Master said in surprise.

“We will ascend to become creatures of consciousness alone. Free of these bodies, free of time, and cause and effect, while creation itself ceases to be,” Rassilon said.

“You see now?" the Doctor asked the Master. "That's what they were planning in the final days of the War. I had to stop them."

“Then, take me with you, Lord President. Let me ascend into glory,” the Master said as he went to his knees as if making obeisance.

“You are diseased, albeit a disease of our own making. No more,” Rassilon said.

The Doctor stood up suddenly and pointed the revolver at Rassilon, knowing he had to stop him but Rassilon said, “Choose your enemy well Doctor. We are many. The Master is but one.”

“But he's the President. Kill him, and Gallifrey could be yours,” the Master said back on his feet.

But being the Lord President of Gallifrey was not what the Doctor wanted. He wanted to stop Gallifrey from returning and destroying the universe for its survival. So the Doctor turned and aimed the gun at the Master.

“He's to blame, not me,” the Master defended as if innocent from bringing Rassilon and the Time Lords to Earth. “Oh, the link is inside my head. Kill me, the link gets broken, they go back. But you never would, you coward. Go on then. Do it.”

Despite their many differences, the Master did know him. The Doctor never would, so he turned again and aimed his gun at Rassilon and the Master became excited as he shouted, “Exactly. It's not just me, it's him. He's the link. Kill him!”

“The final act of your life is murder. But which one of us?” Rassilon asked.

Martha watched the exchange knowing this was wrong. Wrong for the Doctor to make such a choice. This was not who he was. The Doctor looked at her and her feelings were written all over her face. For him not to choose. To find another way as he had told her.

The Doctor turned to look at Rassilon again and a woman behind him lowered her hands, revealing her tear stricken face. The Doctor looked in shock at the woman's face, seeing his mother's face, realizing they had brought her back too. But she looked over the Doctor's shoulder and the Doctor turned back to face the Master.

He knew what he had to do.

"Get out of the way," the Doctor shouted and the Master only hesitated for a moment before moving.

The Doctor pulled the trigger and shot the White-Point Star, shattering the diamond and the link which held Gallifrey to this world. With the link gone, the Time Lords and Gallifrey would be sucked back into the Time War.

"The link is broken. Back into the Time War, Rassilon. Back into hell," the Doctor said.

"You'll die with me, Doctor," Rassilon said.

"I know," the Doctor said watching his mother cover her face and knowing he had doomed her as well. But she had already been lost a long long time ago.

Rassilon raised his gauntlet and aimed it at the Doctor who did not try and avoid it.

"Get out of the way," the Master instructed.

The Doctor stepped aside and the Master attacked Rassilon with all the energy which gave him life.

"You did this to me!" the Master accused walking forward as energy continued to blast from his hands. "All of my life! You made me! One! Two! Three! Four!"

Rassilon was forced to his knees by the strength of the Master's energy as the world shook again and the Doctor was thrown off his feet. He watched as the Time Lords and the Master disappeared in bright light and Gallifrey faded away from the sky.

Everything fell into a still quiet then. As if a great storm had passed through, and in its void calm had settled in.

“I’m alive,” the Doctor gasped in disbelief. “I’m still alive.”

He stared at the empty space in front of him. The Master was gone and the Time Lords with him. And he was still here alive. He felt relief wash over him and almost cried in happiness. He won. The Ood had been wrong. He was still alive.

Then he heard a knock. One, two, three, four.

The Doctor froze and felt dread engulf him before he stood up and turned around to look behind him. The sight of Martha standing in front of him caused his heart to sink.

“Is it over? Are they gone?” Martha asked with a brilliant smile on her face.

The Doctor nodded, thinking how unfairly beautiful she looked. “Yeah.”

He didn’t think it possible but her smile broadened and became impossibly more brilliant.

“We did it!” she said enthusiastically. “Let me out of here so I can hug you.”

But the Doctor did not move. Instead, he felt frozen in place, trying to deny the reality before him.

Martha saw the look on his face and knew something was wrong. “What is it? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“The Master left the Nuclear Bolt running. It’s gone into overload,” he explained as Martha watched him in confusion. “All the excess radiation gets vented inside there. Vinvocci glass contains it. All five hundred thousand rads.”

“So open the door then and let me out,” she said trying to fight down the feeling of dread which had plagued her all day and seemed to be now crawling up her spine.

“It’s gone critical. Touch one control and it floods. Even my sonic would set it off,” the Doctor explained as he lifted it helplessly

Understanding dawned on Martha and she took a small step back.

“Leave me then,” she said.

The Doctor smiled if only to be ironic. Starting to feel himself become overwhelmed with emotion. That was Martha. Always willing to protect everyone even if it meant sacrificing herself. And he loved her for it.

That was why this was unfair. He felt anger and grief coursing through him, clenching his fists and closing his eyes to try to stop himself from shouting and raging at the universe. It was not fair. They had defeated the Master. They had sent the Time Lord’s back. It should have been enough. Why could they not have more time?

But the Doctor took a deep breath, feeling tears prick his eyes as he looked up at Martha and knew his time was running out. It was not enough time, he thought. He wanted more. They deserved more. They could have done so much more together. But instead, this was their reward. It was not fair.

"The system is going critical, you have to come out of there," the Doctor said going to stand next to the door.

"The Ood, they said it was the Master. And the Master is gone," Martha tried to reason.

"I was wrong. I thought it was the Master. I should have realized the Ood have no gender and it could have been anyone," the Doctor said. He took a step forward and said. "You have to get out of there."

“You’ll die,” Martha replied.

“I won't die,” the Doctor corrected.

"You're lying," Martha said shaking her head. “You said it yourself, even regenerating feels like dying. Everything that you are dies.”

“I’d rather die a thousand times than lose you,” the Doctor said.

He reached for the handle and Martha moved forward in an attempt to stop him but was stopped by the glass.

“Please, it can’t be because of me. I can’t let you die. I can’t… I can’t…,” Martha’s voice trembled in anguish and broke off knowing there was nothing she could do or say to save the Doctor.

The Doctor rested his hand on the handle and he looked up at Martha, wanting to hold her but all he could do was smile.

“Martha, I love you,” he said.

“No, please don’t,” Martha still begged him as guilt filled her heart and tears filled her eyes. “Please, I can’t let you die because of me.”

In a calm voice which hid his anguish, the Doctor said, “This isn’t the end for us. It will still be me.”

“You weren’t ready for it to be over,” Martha said wiping away tears.

“Martha, I wouldn’t change a thing,” the Doctor said. “I have loved every moment with you and I’m going to continue loving you.”

Martha looked at the Doctor feeling helpless.

“I love you,” she said.

“Never change, not for this or anything. You’re perfect the way you are,” he said smiling at her. “Now, I’m going to open the door. When I do, you have to step out.”

Martha nodded her head, unable to speak.

“You have to be quick,” he said. “Three, two, one.”

The Doctor pushed on the handle and the door swung open. He quickly entered the booth and closed the door behind him as Martha’s door unlocked and she walked out. She turned to look at the Doctor and saw red light flood his chamber.

As radiation flooded his chamber, the Doctor felt like every atom in his body was splitting apart. He tried to hold back from screaming, but pain overwhelmed every facet of his being and he cried out in agony. His legs buckled and he slowly collapsed to the ground unable to withstand the pain.

Martha could only watch helplessly as the Doctor struggled with the pain, her own heart mirroring his pain. Tears sprang from her eyes again as she wished she could change places with him.

Not soon enough, the power died down and the red light enveloping the Doctor faded.

“Doctor… Doctor,” Martha called to him as he remained motionless on the ground.

She tried to open the door but it was still locked. The Doctor dragged himself to his feet, leaning heavily against the glass and feeling like his body was tearing itself apart.

“Hi," he said with a weary smile.

“Is it over?” she asked looking over him with worry.

“The system is dead. I absorbed it all,” he said as the door opened. “Now it opens, yeah.”

The Doctor stepped out and stumbled but Martha caught him.

“I’ve got you,” she said as the Doctor hugged her.

When he seemed more stable on his feet, he stood up straight.

“You’re hurt,” Martha said as she gently touched his bruised cheek. His whole face was covered in cuts and bruises from his fall.

The Doctor wiped a hand over his face and his hand glowed golden as it moved over the wounds, making them disappear under the golden light.

Martha touched his face again, surprised that all his cuts and bruises had miraculously disappeared. “How… how did you do that? You’ve never done that before."

“It’s starting,” the Doctor said ominously.

Martha hugged him again, knowing what he meant and knowing her time with this Doctor was now limited. The Doctor wrapped his arms around her again and squeezed her tighter. He kissed the top of her head but he forced himself to pull away.

“I have to get to the Tardis,” he said.

They made their way to the rooftop and saw everyone outside was cheering and shouting with joy at the disappearance of the burning red planet in the sky. Martha and the Doctor ignored them, as they made their way to the Tardis. But as Martha tried to follow the Doctor into the Tardis, he stopped her.

"I have to go alone," he said.

“I want to be with you,” Martha said.

“Something is wrong. The radiation I absorbed will make it too dangerous to have anyone with me in the Tardis. But I will be safe inside her,” the Doctor tried to reassure her.

The Doctor held Martha’s cheek, savouring his last moments with her before he changed. Martha covered his hand with her own, still reluctant to let him go. They knew words meant little now, so the Tenth Doctor kissed Martha for the last time, saying his last goodbye to her.

The Doctor also hesitated to leave, his hands trailing across Martha’s cheek, imprinting the feel of her skin to his memory. Wishing for more time and knowing he had to leave. As he let go, Martha caught his hand, still not wanting to let go.

“Come back to me,” she implored.

“I will be gone for only a few minutes," the Doctor said. "You won’t even feel it.”

Martha let go and the Doctor forced himself to turn away and opened the door to the Tardis. He stopped and turned to take one final look at Martha. Martha smiled a final goodbye to the Doctor unable to speak as she did not trust her voice. The Doctor smiled back before walking into the Tardis and it began to dematerialize. Only when it was completely gone did Martha crumble to the ground and begin to cry.

Blaming herself. Because after everything, it was because of her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I first started writing this story, I never intended to make it to Ten's regeneration. I never intended to do a lot of things I've written. But when I picked it up again, I knew the Doctor would regenerate and Martha would be the one in the glass chamber. So, I added hints to foreshadow this throughout the story.
> 
> I'm really interested to hear what everyone thought of the changes I made. Please comment and let me know.
> 
> One more chapter to go!
> 
> Thanks for reading!


End file.
